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High-Density Plasma-Induced Etch Damage of GaN

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 February 2011

R. J. Shul ,
L. Zhang ,
A. G. Baca ,
C. G. Willison ,
J. Han ,
S. J. Pearton ,
F. Ren ,
J. C. Zolper  and
L. F. Lester
R. J. Shul
Affiliation:
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185–0603, rjshul@sandia.gov
L. Zhang
Affiliation:
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185–0603, rjshul@sandia.gov
A. G. Baca
Affiliation:
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185–0603, rjshul@sandia.gov
C. G. Willison
Affiliation:
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185–0603, rjshul@sandia.gov
J. Han
Affiliation:
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185–0603, rjshul@sandia.gov
S. J. Pearton
Affiliation:
University of Florida, Department of Materials Science and Engineering Gainesville, FL 32611
F. Ren
Affiliation:
University of Florida, Department of Materials Science and Engineering Gainesville, FL 32611
J. C. Zolper
Affiliation:
Office of Naval Research, Arlington, VA 22217
L. F. Lester
Affiliation:
University of New Mexico, Center for High Technology Materials, Albuquerque, NM 87106
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Abstract

Anisotropic, smooth etching of the group-Ill nitrides has been reported at relatively high rates in high-density plasma etch systems. However, such etch results are often obtained under high dc-bias and/or high plasma flux conditions where plasma induced damage can be significant. Despite the fact that the group-III nitrides have higher bonding energies than more conventional III–V compounds, plasma-induced etch damage is still a concern. Attempts to minimize such damage by reducing the ion energy or increasing the chemical activity in the plasma often result in a loss of etch rate or anisotropy which significantly limits critical dimensions and reduces the utility of the process for device applications requiring vertical etch profiles. It is therefore necessary to develop plasma etch processes which couple anisotropy for critical dimension and sidewall profile control and high etch rates with low-damage for optimum device performance. In this study we report changes in sheet resistance and contact resistance for n- and p-type GaN samples exposed to an Ar inductively coupled plasma (ICP). In general, plasma-induced damage was more sensitive to ion bombardment energies as compared to plasma flux. In addition, p-GaN was typically more sensitive to plasma-induced damage as compared to n-GaN.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 573: Symposium Z – Compound Semiconductor Surface Passivation and Novel Device.. , 1999 , 271
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1999

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