Indium surfactant assisted HVPE of high quality gallium nitride and gallium nitride alloy films

• US 8,148,241 B2
• Filed: 07/23/2010
• Issued: 04/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Inventors: Su, Jie, Kryliouk, Olga
• Primary Examiner(s): Garber, Charles
• Assistant Examiner(s): ABDELAZIEZ, YASSER A
• Application Number:
  US12/842,896
• Publication Number:
  US 20110027974A1
• Time in Patent Office: 620 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 438/478
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/4488 by in situ generation of reactive gas by chemical or electrochemical reaction
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/455 characterised by the method used for introducing gases into reaction chamber or for modifying gas flows in reaction chamber
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/45506 Turbulent flow
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 25/02 Epitaxial-layer growth
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 29/406 Gallium nitride
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0237 Materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02458 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02491 Conductive materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02499 Monolayers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02502 consisting of two layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0254 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0262 Reduction or decomposition of gaseous compounds, e.g. CVD
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/2003 Nitride compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/7786 with direct single heterostructure, i.e. with wide bandgap layer formed on top of active layer, e.g. direct single heterostructure MIS-like HEMT
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/007 comprising nitride compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/04 with a quantum effect structure or superlattice, e.g. tunnel junction
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/06 within the light emitting region, e.g. quantum confinement structure or tunnel barrier

Abstract

One embodiment of depositing a gallium nitride (GaN) film on a substrate comprises providing a source of indium (In) and gallium (Ga) and depositing a monolayer of indium (In) on the surface of the gallium nitride (GaN) film. The monolayer of indium (In) acts as a surfactant to modify the surface energy and facilitate the epitaxial growth of the film by suppressing three dimensional growth and enhancing or facilitating two dimensional growth. The deposition temperature is kept sufficiently high to enable the indium (In) to undergo absorption and desorption on the gallium nitride (GaN) film without being incorporated into the solid phase gallium nitride (GaN) film. The gallium (Ga) and indium (In) can be provided by a single source or separate sources.

Claims

1. A method of depositing a group III nitride film comprising:

providing an In source and a Ga source;

depositing a GaN film;

depositing a monolayer of In on the surface of the GaN film; and

heating the GaN film to a deposition temperature sufficiently high to prevent the In from being incorporated into the GaN film.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the GaN film is deposited on a substrate.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the substrate is selected from the group consisting of a sapphire substrate, a silicon carbide substrate, a silicon on diamond substrate, a quartz substrate, a glass substrate, a zinc oxide substrate, a magnesium oxide substrate, and a lithium aluminum oxide substrate.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the atomic ratio of In to Ga is 1-10% In to 90-99% Ga.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the deposition temperature is greater than 900°

C.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the In and the Ga are provided as a single source alloy.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the In and the Ga are provided as separate sources.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein a buffer layer is deposited on top of the substrate, the GaN film is deposited on top of the buffer layer and one or more device layers are deposited on top of the GaN film.