Effect of InGaN/GaN superlattice as underlayer on characteristics of AlGaN/GaN HEMT

The impact of an InGaN/GaN superlattice (SL) on AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistor characteristics was investigated, and two effects were discovered: one is a substantial improvement in the conduction characteristics as a result of the InGaN/GaN channel layer, while the other is the effect of diffusion suppression relating to impurities or point defects from the carbon-doped layer. The InGaN/GaN SL was used as a channel layer to improve the mobility and concentration of the two-dimensional channel electron gas. It was found that by inserting the InGaN/GaN SL just above a C-doped semi-insulating GaN layer as the InGaN underlayer, the conduction current of the SL with five periods (5SL) was observed to be much higher than that of the conventional material with a GaN channel layer of over 2 μm in thickness. The results demonstrated that this SL layer is effective in suppressing the diffusion of impurities or point defects originating from the carbon-doped layer, resulting in the device performance improvement.