High electron mobility recovery in AlGaN/GaN 2DEG channels regrown on etched surfaces

This paper reports high two-dimensional electron gas mobility attained from the regrowth of the AlGaN gating layer on ex situ GaN surfaces. To repair etch-damaged GaN surfaces, various pretreatments were conducted via metalorganic chemical vapor deposition, followed by a regrown AlGaN/GaN mobility test structure to evaluate the extent of recovery. The developed treatment process that was shown to significantly improve the electron mobility consisted of a N-2 + NH3 pre-anneal plus an insertion of a 4 nm or thicker GaN interlayer prior to deposition of the AlGaN gating layer. Using the optimized process, a high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) device was fabricated which exhibited a high mobility of 1450 cm(2) V-1 s(-1) (R-sh = 574 ohm/sq) and low dispersion characteristics. The additional inclusion of an in situ Al2O3 dielectric into the regrowth process for MOS-HEMTs still preserved the transport properties near etch-impacted areas.