Semiconductor light emission device and manufacturing method thereof

• US 6,791,117 B2
• Filed: 01/14/2003
• Issued: 09/14/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Nunotani, Shinji, Takahashi, Koichi, Ohashi, Kenichi, Yoshitake, Shunji
• Primary Examiner(s): Kang, Donghee
• Application Number:
  US10/341,465
• Publication Number:
  US 20030132445A1
• Time in Patent Office: 609 Days
• Field of Search: 257/94-96, 257/98, 257/103, 257/12-15, 372/45, 372/46, 438/22, 438/24, 438/29, 438/46, 438/47
• US Class Current: 257/94
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/105 with a resonant cavity structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/16 with a particular crystal structure or orientation, e.g. polycrystalline, amorphous or porous
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/22 Roughened surfaces, e.g. at the interface between epitaxial layers

Abstract

A semiconductor light emitting device is disclosed, which comprises a substrate, and a multi-layer semiconductor film formed on the substrate, the multi-layer semiconductor film including a plurality of semiconductor layers overlaid on the substrate, the semiconductor layers having a light emission layer for emitting a light, wherein the light is picked up at a first side of the multi-layer semiconductor film, which is a side opposite to the substrate, wherein a pattern having a light pickup surface is formed on a light emitting portion of the multi-layer semiconductor film, the light pickup surface is in a (111) plane or a plane in the vicinity of the (111) plane, and an unevenness is formed on the light pickup surface.

Claims

1. A semiconductor light emitting device comprising:

a substrate; and

a multi-layer semiconductor film formed on the substrate, the multi-layer semiconductor film including a plurality of semiconductor layers overlaid on the substrate, the semiconductor layers having a light emission layer for emitting a light, wherein the light is picked up at a first side of the multi-layer semiconductor film, which is a side opposite to the substrate,

wherein a pattern having a light pickup surface is formed on a light emitting portion of the multi-layer semiconductor film, the light pickup surface is in a (111) plane or a plane in a vicinity of the (111) plane but not in a (100) plane, and an unevenness is formed on the light pickup surface.

2. The semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the plane of the light pickup surface is from the (111) plane to a plane inclined up to ±

20 degrees from the (111) plane.

3. The semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the pattern formed on the light pickup portion has the light pickup surface in the (111) plane or the plane in the vicinity of the (111) plane by carrying out a predetermined processing on a (100) plane.

4. The semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 3, wherein the plane of the light pickup surface is from the (111) plane to a plane inclined up to ±

20 degrees from the (111) plane.

5. The semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the patterns formed on the light pickup portion are arranged in a form of a line.

6. The semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the patterns formed on the light pickup portion are arranged in a form of a matrix.

7. The semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein a height and a cycle of the unevenness formed on the light pickup surface are equal to or smaller than a wavelength of the light emitted from the multi-layer semiconductor film.

8. The semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the multi-layer semiconductor film has a double hetero structure portion in which an active layer is sandwiched by a pair of cladding layers and a current diffusion layer is formed on that of the cladding layers which is on the side opposite to the substrate, the light pickup surface and unevenness are formed on a surface of the current diffusion layer.

9. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 1, comprising:

blading a light pickup surface formed of the (100) plane to expose the (111) plane or the plane in the vicinity of the (111) plane; and

carrying out a rough surface processing on the (111) plane exposed or the crystal plane exposed in the vicinity of the (111) plane to form the unevenness.

10. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting device, according to claim 9, wherein the rough surface processing is carried out by dry etching the light pickup surface using a halogen-base gas.

11. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting device, according to claim 9, wherein the rough surface processing is carried out by wet etching the light pickup surface.

12. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting device, according to claim 9, wherein the rough surface processing is carried out by heat-treating the light pickup surface in an HCl atmosphere.

13. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 1, comprising:

forming a line-and-space mask on a light pickup surface of the (100) plane;

reactive ion etching the light pickup surface into a tapered form using the mask to expose the (111) plane; and

carrying out rough surface processing on the (111) plane exposed to form the unevenness.

14. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting device, according to claim 13, wherein the rough surface processing is carried out by dry etching the light pickup surface using a halogen-base gas.

15. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting device, according to claim 13, wherein the rough surface processing is carried out by wet etching the light pickup surface.

16. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting device, according to claim 13, wherein the rough surface processing is carried out by heat-treating the light pickup surface in an HCl atmosphere.

17. The semiconductor light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of patterns formed on the light pickup portion are arranged in a form of a line-and-space.