Patent Application
20130221321
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a light-emitting diode (LED) device, and more particularly to a LED device with a superlattice tunnel junction.
2. Description of Related Art
One of the methods for increasing emission efficiency of a light-emitting diode (LED) is using a tunnel junction to stack up two or more LEDs. The stacked LEDs emit more light than a single LED, and thus, have an increased brightness. The tunnel junction may enhance current spreading such that more carriers are available in an active layer for recombination. Further, the stacked LEDs have less electrode contact than individual LEDs of the same quantity. Less electrode contact may save more area and lessen electromigration phenomenon.
Conventional stacked LEDs with the tunnel junction may still, however, have emission efficiency problems and improvement in the emission efficiency is desired. Thus, there is a need for a novel LED structure with higher emission efficiency.
In certain embodiments, a light-emitting diode (LED) device has a superlattice structure as a tunnel junction to increase emission efficiency. In certain embodiments, a better tunneling efficiency is achieved by adjusting indium and/or aluminum concentrations in the superlattice structure.
In certain embodiments, an LED unit of an LED device includes a first LED, a second LED and a superlattice structure. The first LED includes an n-side nitride semiconductor layer, a first active layer and a p-side nitride semiconductor layer. The second LED includes an n-side nitride semiconductor layer, a second active layer, and a p-side nitride semiconductor layer. The superlattice structure may include alternating layers of at least one first sub-layer and at least one second sub-layer. The superlattice structure may be located between the p-side nitride semiconductor layer of the first LED and the n-side nitride semiconductor layer of the second LED. The superlattice structure may provide a tunnel junction between the first LED and the second LED. The superlattice structure has an absorption spectra, the first active layer has a first emission spectra, and the second active layer has a second emission spectra. The absorption spectra is located on a shorter-wavelength side of at least one of the first and the second emission spectra.
Second LED 2 may include n-side nitride semiconductor layer 51, second active layer 52, p-side nitride semiconductor layer 53, and second electrode 50. In certain embodiments, second active layer 52 is placed between n-side nitride semiconductor layer 51 and p-side nitride semiconductor layer 53. Second electrode 50 may be placed on p-side nitride semiconductor layer 53. In some embodiments, n-side nitride semiconductor layer 51 includes n-type gallium nitride, second active layer 52 includes indium gallium nitride, and p-side nitride semiconductor layer 53 includes p-type gallium nitride. Second electrode 50 may be electrically connected to the p-type gallium nitride.
In certain embodiments, superlattice structure 44 is formed between first LED 1 and second LED 2. Superlattice structure 44 acts as a tunnel junction that stacks first LED 1 with second LED 2 in order to increase emission efficiency (e.g., the superlattice structure provides a tunnel junction between the first LED and the second LED). Superlattice structure 44 may be formed by alternating at least one first sub-layer 441 (e.g., aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN)) and at least one second sub-layer 442 (e.g., indium gallium nitride). For example, alternating layers of first sub-layer 441 and second sub-layer 442 may form superlattice structure 44. In some embodiments, alternating first sub-layers 441 and second sub-layers 442 may be one of the following alternating pairs of layers: AlGaN/InGaN, AlGaN/GaN, and GaN/InGaN.
Superlattice structure 44 may include, as shown in
As light absorption effect becomes remarkable when the indium concentration is higher than 20% (or 0.2), the indium concentration of certain embodiments, is set below or equal to 20%. In certain embodiments, the indium concentration is set at 15% (or 0.15).
In some embodiments, a proper tunnel junction is obtained with a low polarization extent (e.g., less than 50%) by increasing the indium concentration (e.g., up to 20% or 0.2).
In some embodiments, the ternary aluminum gallium nitride and/or indium gallium nitride of first sub-layer 441/second sub-layer 442 of superlattice structure 44 is replaced with quaternary aluminum indium gallium nitride (AlInGaN). The tunneling efficiency of superlattice structure 44 may be increased by adjusting an indium concentration and/or an aluminum concentration of first sub-layer 441/second sub-layer 442.
In certain embodiments, first active layer 42 of first LED 1 and second active layer 52 of second LED 2 are made of a same material and a same concentration such that the first LED and the second LED emit light at substantially the same wavelength. In some embodiments, first active layer 42 of first LED 1 and second active layer 52 of second LED 2 are made of different materials or different concentrations such that the first LED and the second LED emit light at different wavelengths. Details may be referred, for example, to U.S. Pat. No. 6,822,991 to Collins et al., entitled “Light emitting devices including tunnel junctions,” disclosure of which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.
First/second active layer 42/52 made of indium gallium nitride may emit light ranging from blue light to green light (445-575 nm), as shown in
(1) stacking LEDs of different colors, for example, one blue LED (470 nm) and one green LED (550 nm);
(2) stacking LEDs of a same color and a same wavelength, for example, five blue LEDs (470 nm);
(3) stacking LEDs of a same color but different wavelengths, for example, five blue LEDs of 460 nm, 470 nm, 480 nm, 490 nm and 500 nm; and
(4) any combination of (1) to (3) illustrated above, for example, (1)+(3) five blue LEDs of 460 nm, 470 nm, 480 nm, 490 nm and 500 nm and five green LEDs of 510 nm, 520 nm, 530 nm, 540 nm and 550 nm.
A white LED may be formed according to one of (1)-(4) described above by using phosphor or other luminescence material in combination with the stacked LEDs. For example, the stacked ten LEDs (i.e., five blue LEDs of 460 nm, 470 nm, 480 nm, 490 nm, 500 nm and five green LEDs of 510 nm, 520 nm, 530 nm, 540 nm, 550 nm) in combination with a proper amount of red phosphor and yellow phosphor may result in a white LED with a high color rendering index (CRI).
A CRI value indicates relative difference between a color produced by a light source (to be measured) illuminating an object and a color produced by a reference light source. Specifically, the CRI value is measured by comparing and quantifying the difference between results respectively obtained by a light source to be measured and a reference light source by illuminating eight samples as specified in DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung, or German Institute for Standardization) 6169. Less difference indicates higher color rendering of the light source to be measured. A light source with a CRI of 100 may produce color substantially the same as being produced by the reference light source. A light source with a lower CRI produces a distorted color. For example, sunlight has a CRI of 100 and a fluorescent light has a CRI of 60-85. Practically speaking, a light source with a CRI higher than 85 may be adapted in most applications.
A white LED is typically made up of a blue LED chip in combination with yellow phosphor (e.g., yttrium aluminum garnet or YAG) and is commonly called due-wavelength white LED, which has low color rendering. A tri-wavelength white LED packages a blue LED in combination with red and green phosphor. As the tri-wavelength white LED involves primary red, green, and blue colors, it typically has higher color rendering (with CRI normally higher than 85) than the due-wavelength white LED (with CRI normally less than 70). A quadric-wavelength white length has further higher color rendering with CRI higher than 95.
In certain embodiments, superlattice structure 44 acts as a tunnel junction to stack first LED 1 (which includes first active layer 42) and second LED 2 (which includes second active layer 52). In order to provide better tunneling effectiveness, first/second sub-layers 441/442 of superlattice structure 44 may contain a material similar to that of first/second active layers 42/52 to produce light absorption or emission. For example, indium gallium nitride of superlattice structure 44 may absorb the emitted light of first LED 1 and/or second LED 2, therefore affecting overall brightness or quality of the LED device.
As described above, LED device 100 includes, from bottom to top, first active layer 42, superlattice structure 44, and second active layer 52. Superlattice structure 44 has an absorption spectra, first active layer 42 has a first emission spectra, and second active layer 52 has a second emission spectra. In order to eliminate or reduce the light absorption phenomenon, the absorption spectra of superlattice structure 44 should be located on a shorter-wavelength side of the first emission spectra of first active layer 42 and/or the second emission spectra of second active layer 52.
Taking the first emission spectra as an example, the absorption spectra of the superlattice structure 44 has one of the following three relationships with the first emission spectra: (1) the two spectra have almost no overlap with each other; (2) the two spectra overlap each other with slight overlapping (less than or equal to 40%); or (3) the two spectra overlap each other with significant overlapping (greater than 40%).
In diagrams illustrating the absorption spectra versus wavelength, an absorption edge may usually be defined at a wavelength at which the absorption intensity reduces abruptly. In embodiments in which superlattice structure 44 acts as a tunnel junction, the superlattice structure has an absorption edge λTL in its absorption spectra. In diagrams illustrating the emission spectra versus wavelength, a wavelength corresponding to a maximum emission intensity may usually exist. In embodiments with first active layer 42 having the first emission spectra and the second active layer 52 having the second emission spectra, the first emission spectra and the second emission spectra may have maximum emission intensities at corresponding wavelengths defined as λfirstQW and λsecondQV, respectively. Taking the first emission spectra as an example, the relationships (1)-(3) as discussed above may be quantitatively described: relationships (1) and (2) fit when λfirstQW is greater than λTL; and relationship (3) fits when λfirstQW is less than or equal to λTL. Similarly, the relationship between the absorption spectra and the second emission spectra may also be quantitatively described by λsecondQW and λTL.
It is to be understood the invention is not limited to particular systems described which may, of course, vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting. As used in this specification, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” include plural referents unless the content clearly indicates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a device” includes a combination of two or more devices and reference to “a material” includes mixtures of materials.
Further modifications and alternative embodiments of various aspects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of this description. Accordingly, this description is to be construed as illustrative only and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the general manner of carrying out the invention. It is to be understood that the forms of the invention shown and described herein are to be taken as the presently preferred embodiments. Elements and materials may be substituted for those illustrated and described herein, parts and processes may be reversed, and certain features of the invention may be utilized independently, all as would be apparent to one skilled in the art after having the benefit of this description of the invention. Changes may be made in the elements described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as described in the following claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 101106134 | Feb 2012 | TW | national |
