Optoelectronic semiconductor chip and method of producing an optoelectronic semiconductor chip

• US 9,306,131 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2014
• Issued: 04/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OSRAM OLED GMBH (Ams-Osram AG)
• Original Assignee: Osram Opto Semiconductors GmbH (Ams-Osram AG)
• Inventors: Gmeinwieser, Nikolaus, Hahn, Berthold
• Primary Examiner(s): Landau, Matthew
• Assistant Examiner(s): Anya, Igwe U
• Application Number:
  US14/526,713
• Publication Number:
  US 20150053919A1
• Time in Patent Office: 524 Days
• Field of Search: 257/13
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/06 within the light emitting region, e.g. quantum confinement structure or tunnel barrier
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/08 with a plurality of light emitting regions, e.g. laterally discontinuous light emitting layer or photoluminescent region integrated within the semiconductor body H01L27/15 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/22 Roughened surfaces, e.g. at the interface between epitaxial layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/24 of the light emitting region, e.g. non-planar junction
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/32 containing nitrogen
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/504 Elements with two or more wavelength conversion materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/508 having a non-uniform spatial arrangement or non-uniform concentration, e.g. patterned wavelength conversion layer, wavelength conversion layer with a concentration gradient of the wavelength conversion material

Abstract

An optoelectronic semiconductor chip having a semiconductor layer sequence includes at least one active layer that generates primary radiation; a plurality of conversion layers that at least partially absorb the primary radiation and convert the primary radiation into secondary radiation of a longer wavelength than the primary radiation; and a roughened portion that extends at least into one of the conversion layers, wherein the roughened portion has a random structure, the semiconductor layer sequence is arranged on a carrier, a top side of the semiconductor layer sequence facing away from the carrier is formed by the roughened portion, the at least one active layer is located between the carrier and the conversion layers, and the roughened portion includes a plurality of recesses free of a semiconductor material.

Claims

1. An optoelectronic semiconductor chip having a semiconductor layer sequence comprising:

at least one active layer that generates primary radiation;

a plurality of conversion layers that at least partially absorb the primary radiation and convert the primary radiation into secondary radiation of a longer wavelength than the primary radiation; and

a roughened portion consisting of a continuous random structure,

wherein the semiconductor layer sequence is arranged on a carrier, a top side of the semiconductor layer sequence facing away from the carrier is formed by the roughened portion, the at least one active layer is located between the carrier and the conversion layers, the semiconductor layer sequence is formed by a single layer sequence epitaxially grown as a whole and comprises both the at least one active layer and the conversion layers which are monolithically integrated in the semiconductor layer sequence,

the roughened portion comprises a plurality of recesses free of a semiconductor material, the roughened portion is the only structuring of the top side, the semiconductor layer sequence is based on InGaAlN and a thickness of the semiconductor layer sequence is less than or equal to 8 μ

m, and

the roughened portion passes completely through the conversion layers in selected places and toward the at least one active layer so that the conversion layers are completely removed in the selected places, when the optoelectronic semiconductor chip is viewed in plan view.

2. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 1, comprising at least two groups of differently configured conversion layers, the groups generating the secondary radiation in at least two mutually different spectral ranges.

3. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 2, wherein the roughened portion extends through all groups of conversion layers and the groups of conversion layers are stacked one above the other.

4. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 1, wherein mixed radiation emitted by the semiconductor chip is formed from the primary radiation and the secondary radiation.

5. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 4, which emits white light.

6. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 4, wherein radiation is emitted at peak regions of the roughening remote from the at least one active layer which has a different color location than at valley regions of the roughening facing an active layer.

7. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductor layer sequence comprises 10 to 50 of the conversion layers.

8. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 1, wherein the roughening is formed completely by hexagonal pyramids or hexagonal truncated pyramids.

9. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 1, wherein an average depth of the roughening is 0.2 μ

m to 3.5 μ

m.

10. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductor layer sequence is based on a material system InGaAlN and the active layer is a multi-quantum well structure, and the conversion layers are based on the GaN/InGaN material system.

11. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 10, wherein a thickness of the conversion layers is 2 nm to 8 nm, and each of the conversion layers absorbs 3% to 10% of the primary radiation arriving at a selected conversion layer.

12. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 1, wherein the carrier is different from a growth substrate of the semiconductor layer sequence, and an optical refractive index does not display a comparatively large jump in the semiconductor layer sequence such that efficient optical coupling is achieved between the active layer and the conversion layers.

13. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 1, wherein two roughenings of different degrees or depths are produced.

14. The optoelectronic semiconductor chip according to claim 13, wherein areas with different degrees or depths of the two roughenings emit light in different colors when the semiconductor chip is in operation, and an average lateral extension of the areas is 10 μ

m to 200 μ

m.

15. An optoelectronic semiconductor chip having a semiconductor layer sequence comprising:

at least one active layer that generates primary radiation;

a plurality of conversion layers that at least partially absorb the primary radiation and convert the primary radiation into secondary radiation of a longer wavelength than the primary radiation; and

a roughened portion consisting of a continuous random structure,

wherein the semiconductor layer sequence is arranged on a carrier, a top side of the semiconductor layer sequence facing away from the carrier is formed by the roughened portion, the at least one active layer is located between the carrier and the conversion layers, the semiconductor layer sequence is formed by a single layer sequence epitaxially grown as a whole and comprises both the at least one active layer and the conversion layers which are monolithically integrated in the semiconductor layer sequence,

the roughened portion comprises a plurality of recesses free of a semiconductor material, the roughened portion is the only structuring of the top side, the semiconductor layer sequence is based on InGaAlN and a thickness of the semiconductor layer sequence is less than or equal to 8 μ

m,

the roughened portion passes completely through the conversion layers in selected places and toward the at least one active layer so that the conversion layers are completely removed in the selected places, when the optoelectronic semiconductor chip is viewed in plan view, and

the plurality of conversion layers comprises at least two groups of differently configured conversion layers, the groups generating the secondary radiation in at least two mutually different spectral ranges, wherein the roughened portion extends through all groups of conversion layers and the groups of conversion layers are stacked one above the other, wherein mixed radiation emitted by the semiconductor chip is formed from the primary radiation and the secondary radiation, and wherein the roughening is formed completely by hexagonal pyramids or hexagonal truncated pyramids.