DOPED GALLIUM NITRIDE HIGH-ELECTRON MOBILITY TRANSISTOR

• US 20150200287A1
• Filed: 01/16/2014
• Published: 07/16/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/16/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qorvo US, Inc. (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: TriQuint Semiconductor Incorporated (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Inventors: Beam, Edward A. III, Xie, Jinqiao
• Granted Patent: US 9,640,650 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02458 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0254 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02576 N-type
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02584 Delta-doping
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/2003 Nitride compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/205 in different semiconductor regions , e.g. heterojunctions
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/365 Planar doping, e.g. atomic-plane doping, delta-doping
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/66462 with a heterojunction interface channel or gate, e.g. HFET, HIGFET, SISFET, HJFET, HEMT
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/7785 with more than one donor layer
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/7787 with wide bandgap charge-carrier supplying layer, e.g. direct single heterostructure MODFET

Abstract

Embodiments include high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) comprising a substrate and a barrier layer including a doped component. The doped component may be a germanium doped layer or a germanium doped pulse. Other embodiments may include methods for fabricating such a HEMT.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a substrate;

a gallium nitride (GaN) buffer layer disposed on the substrate; and

an aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN) barrier layer disposed on the GaN buffer layer, the AlGaN barrier layer including a doped component.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the doped component includes a doped pulse.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the doped component includes a doped layer.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the doping layer has a thickness of approximately 10 angstroms.

5. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the doped layer is doped with germanium.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the doping concentration is approximately 5×

10¹⁹ cm<sup>−

3</sup> or greater.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the AlGaN barrier layer includes an aluminum concentration of approximately 15%.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the AlGaN barrier layer further includes a spacer sublayer between the doped component and the GaN buffer layer.

9. An apparatus comprising:

a first aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN) barrier layer;

a gallium nitride (GaN) channel layer coupled with the first barrier layer to form a first heterojunction; and

a second AlGaN barrier layer coupled with the channel layer to form a second heterojunction,

wherein the first or second AlGaN barrier layer includes a doped component.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the first AlGaN barrier layer includes a first doped component and the second AlGaN barrier layer includes a second doped component.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first and second doped components include first and second doped layers, respectively.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first doped layer includes an aluminum concentration of approximately 15%, a germanium doping concentration of approximately 5×

10¹⁹ cm<sup>−

3</sup> or greater, and a thickness of approximately 10 angstroms.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the second doped layer includes an aluminum concentration of approximately 4%, a germanium doping concentration of approximately 5×

10¹⁹ cm<sup>−

3</sup> or greater, and a thickness of approximately 10 angstroms.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first and second doped components include first and second doping pulses.

15. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the first AlGaN barrier layer includes an aluminum concentration of approximately 15% and the second AlGaN barrier layer includes an aluminum concentration of approximately 4%.

16. A method comprising:

forming a gallium nitride (GaN) buffer layer;

forming an aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN) barrier layer on the GaN buffer layer,

wherein forming the AlGaN barrier layer includes forming a doped component using a germanium dopant.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein forming the doped component includes:

forming a doped layer with a doping concentration of approximately 5×

10¹⁹ cm<sup>−

3</sup> or greater.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein forming the doped component includes:

forming a doped pulse.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein forming the doped component includes:

forming a doped pulse.

19. A method comprising:

forming a first aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN) barrier layer on a substrate;

forming a gallium nitride (GaN) channel on the first AlGaN barrier layer;

forming a second AlGaN barrier layer on the GaN channel,

wherein forming the first or the second AlGaN barrier layer includes forming a doped component.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein forming the doped component includes:

forming a doped layer with a doping concentration of approximately 5×

10¹⁹ cm<sup>−

3</sup> or greater.

22. A system comprising:

a transceiver to generate RF signals; and

a power amplifier module coupled with the transceiver to amplify the RF signals from the transceiver and to provide amplified RF signals to an antenna switch module,

wherein the power amplifier module includes a high-electron mobility transistor (HEMT) comprising;

a substrate; and

an aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN) barrier layer disposed on the substrate, the AlGaN barrier layer including a germanium doped component.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the HEMT includes a single heterojunction or a double heterjunction.

24. The system of claim 22, wherein the AlGaN barrier layer includes an aluminum concentration of approximately 15%.