This application claims the benefit of foreign priority applications filed in Germany, serial number 10 2006 034 820.6, filed Jul. 27, 2006, and serial number 10 2006 046 237.8, filed Sep. 29, 2006. The contents of the prior applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
The invention relates to a semiconductor layer structure [comprising] a superlattice composed of stacked layers of a first and at least one second type, wherein the layers of the first type and the at least one second type are III-V compound semiconductors and adjacent layers of different types in the superlattice differ in composition with respect to at least one element. The invention further relates to an optoelectronic component comprising such a semiconductor layer structure.
Superlattices containing stacked layers of different types have different electrical, optical and epitaxial properties from a layer of the same thickness that is composed of just one material of one composition. In particular, with a suitable composition and doping, a superlattice composed of alternately stacked p-doped gallium nitride (GaN) and p-doped aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN) layers may have a higher conductivity than a p-doped pure GaN or AlGaN layer of the same thickness. Due to these properties, superlattices have found numerous applications in electronic and optoelectronic components.
It is an object of the invention to create a semiconductor layer structure with superlattice of the initially cited kind that has improved electrical and optical properties. It is a further object of the invention to specify an optoelectronic component having such a semiconductor layer structure.
This object is achieved in accordance with claim 1 by means of a semiconductor layer structure of the initially cited kind in which at least two layers of the same type within the superlattice have different contents of at least one element, the content of at least one element is graded within a layer of the superlattice, and the layers of the superlattice contain dopants in predefined concentrations, said superlattice comprising layers that are doped with different dopants.
According to the invention, the content of the at least one element with respect to which adjacent layers of different types differ in composition is different in the two layers of the same type, the content of the at least one element is graded within a layer of the superlattice, and the layers of the superlattice contain dopants in predefined concentrations, said superlattice comprising layers that are doped with different dopants.
The electrical, optical and epitaxial properties of the superlattice can thereby be adapted to given requirements in the best possible manner. This applies in particular to epitaxial constraints, to which the superlattice can be adapted.
Requirements on the superlattice frequently are not the same over its entire thickness, for example because physical variables, such as electrical or optical field strength, that influence those requirements also are not constant over the thickness of the superlattice.
For example, the composition within the layers of a type can have an effect on the refractive index, and thus on optical waveguiding; on the size of the band gap, and thus on optical absorption losses; and on the lattice structure and/or lattice constant, and thus on strains exerted on adjacent layers by the superlattice. The dependence of the variables on the content of an element can work against the desired properties of the superlattice, for example in such a way that a high content may well have an advantageous effect on waveguiding by the superlattice and/or advantageously reduce optical absorption losses, but it may also disadvantageously increase strains between adjacent layers.
In such a case, having all the layers of one type be of the same composition can, at best, represent a compromise between the advantages that can be gained and the disadvantages that must be accepted. Conversely, through the use of a composition that varies within a layer type, a graded content of at least one element, and different dopants it becomes possible to accommodate spatially different requirements on the superlattice, and, for example, to provide a different composition and/or different dopants for layers in the edge region of the superlattice, which are determinative of the strain exerted on adjacent layers, than for layers in the middle region of the superlattice, which are determinative with regard to waveguiding because of the spatial extent of that region.
The term “superlattice” basically denotes a structure that exhibits a periodicity in which the period length is greater than the lattice constants of the materials used. In the context of the application, the term “superlattice” is applied to a sequence of stacked layers in which a layer sequence that includes at least two layers of different types repeats in a direction perpendicular to the interfaces between the layers, i.e., for example, in the growth direction of the layers. A superlattice in this sense is constituted, for example, by a sequence of alternately stacked layers of different types, where “alternately” is to be understood as meaning that two or more layers succeed one another by turns. A type can be represented by more than one layer in such a repeating layer sequence. Examples of such superlattices are provided by the following layer sequences: “ab|ab|ab| . . . ”, “abc|abc|abc| . . . ”, “abcb|abcb| . . . ” and “ababababc|ababababc| . . . ”, where a, b and c each represent layers of a respective type and the repeating layer sequence is indicated by the separator “|”.
In the context of the application, the composition of a layer is defined by elements contained in the layer and by its nominal stoichiometry (i.e., the stoichiometry within the accuracy limits of composition monitoring during or after the growth process), dopants and impurities excluded. The stoichiometry is given by the content (percentage) of individual elements in the layer. In the context of the invention, there is no limit on the number of elements in a layer. The layers of the superlattice can, for example, be elementary, i.e. composed of only one element, or they can be binary, ternary, quaternary, etc.
The type of a layer is determined by the composition of that layer, although this does not necessarily mean that all layers of one type have the same composition. The composition of the layers of one type can vary within the superlattice in a predetermined manner, e.g. in that the concentration of one element in the layers of one type increases from layer to layer of that type. Adjacent layers of different types in the superlattice differ in composition with respect to at least one element, however.
According to advantageous configurations of the semiconductor layer structure, the superlattice comprises alternately stacked InxAlyGa1-x-yN and InwAlzGa1-w-zN layers, where 0≦x,y,w,z≦1 and x+y≦1 and w+z≦1, or alternately stacked InxAlyGa1-x-yP and InwAlzGa1-x-yP layers, where 0≦x,y,w,z≦1 and x+y≦1 and w+z≦1, or alternately stacked InxAlyGa1-x-yAs and InwAlzGa1-w-zAs layers, where 0≦x,y,w,z≦1 and x+y≦1 and w+z≦1. For one thing, these material systems are very important technologically, and for another, an advantageous increase in conductivity, particularly of hole conduction, can be observed in these systems with the use of a superlattice.
According to a further advantageous configuration of the semiconductor layer structure, the individual layers of the superlattice are each assigned a vertical position within the semiconductor layer structure and the content of at least one element in a layer depends in a predetermined manner on the vertical position of that layer in the semiconductor layer structure. In this way, the superlattice and its properties can be adapted in the best possible manner to spatially different requirements on the superlattice.
According to further advantageous configurations, the dependence of the content of at least one element on vertical position either is defined by a common function for all the layers or is defined by a first function for layers of the first type and by at least one second function for layers of the at least one second type. Particularly preferably, the first and/or the at least one second and/or the common function is a step function or a monotonously rising/falling function or a linear function or a polynomial function or a root function or an exponential function or a logarithmic function or a periodic function or a superposition of the aforesaid functions or contains fractions of one of these functions.
According to a further advantageous configurations [sic], all the layers of the superlattice have the same thickness. According to a further advantageous configurations [sic], layers of different types have different thicknesses.
The object is further achieved by means of an optoelectronic component comprising a semiconductor layer structure of the before-described kind. In optoelectronic components, requirements concerning specific properties of the superlattice often are not spatially constant. A semiconductor layer structure in which layers of the same type do not have the same composition within the superlattice makes it possible to adapt the electrical, optical and epitaxial properties of the superlattice to given requirements in the best possible manner.
According to advantageous configurations of the optoelectronic component, said component comprises an optically active layer, and the at least one element whose content is different in at least two layers of the same type is Al. In this case, the Al content in the superlattice of the semiconductor layer structure increases or decreases with increasing distance from the optically active layer. In an optoelectronic component comprising an optically active layer, a high Al content in a layer of the superlattice that is directly or indirectly adjacent the active layer may cause detrimental strains in the active layer that reduce the quantum efficiency of that layer. Having the Al content in the superlattice decrease in the direction of the active layer makes it possible to reduce losses due to lower quantum efficiency. A high Al content, on the other hand, leads to a larger band gap and thus to lower optical absorption by a layer. Since the intensity of a radiation generated by an active layer increases in the direction of that active layer, an Al content that increases within the superlattice in the direction of the active layer can therefore be advantageous with regard to optical absorption losses.
According to further advantageous configurations, the optoelectronic component is a light-emitting diode or a laser diode.
Further advantageous configurations of the invention will become apparent from the exemplary embodiments described hereinafter in conjunction with the figures.
Therein:
Disposed on the n-contact layer 3 are an n-cladding layer 4 and an n-waveguide layer 5. Applied to these is an active layer 6, followed by a barrier layer 7 and a p-waveguide layer 8. These are followed by a p-cladding layer implemented as a superlattice 9. The superlattice 9 contains the alternately stacked layers 9a of a first type a and layers 9b of a second type b.
Grown on the superlattice 9 is a p-contact layer 10. In the region on the right, the layer sequence is ablated by etching down to a surface of n-contact layer 3 facing away from the substrate, or masking was used to prevent this region from being built up at all. An n-contact 11 is applied to the exposed area of n-contact layer 3. A p-contact 12 is disposed on p-contact layer 10.
The illustrated exemplary embodiment can be implemented, for example, on the basis of InxAlyGa1-x-yN, InxAlyGa1-x-yAs, InxAlyGa1-x-yP or InxGa1-xAsyN1-y material systems in which 0≦x≦1, 0≦y≦1, 0≦x+y≦1. The invention naturally is not limited to these material systems, but can also be constructed on the basis of other material systems, depending on the desired wavelength or other requirements.
The component illustrated in
Analogously, the p-contact layer 10 can be implemented in the form of a GaN layer p-doped with magnesium (Mg), in which case hole conduction induced by the magnesium impurities is activated in a known manner, e.g. by electron irradiation or heat treatment, after the growth of the layer. As the n- or p-contacts respectively 11 and 12, electrodes, made for example of aluminum or nickel, can be vapor-deposited on the corresponding n- or p-contact layers respectively 3 and 10. The necessary exposure of the n-contact layer 3 can be effected, for example, by means of a dry etch process performed in chlorine gas or by argon ion sputtering.
Alternatively, a conductive substrate such as, for example, gallium nitride (GaN) or silicon carbide (SiC) can be used instead of a nonconductive substrate 1. Under these circumstances, it may be possible to dispense with the n-contact layer 3 and, in some cases, e.g. if GaN is used, with the matching layer 2. The n-contact 11 can then be applied opposite the p-contact 12 on the side of the substrate facing away from the semiconductor layer structure, so that a vertically conductive semiconductor layer structure is formed.
Without limitation,
The active layer 6 can be, for example, a single or multiple quantum layer structure, in which indium gallium nitride (InGaN) quantum layers are stacked alternately with AlGaN barrier layers.
In the context of the invention, the term “quantum layer” is to be understood as a layer dimensioned or structured such that a quantization of the charge carrier energy level that is essential for the production of radiation occurs, for example by confinement. In particular, the term “quantum layer” carries no implication or restriction as to the dimensionality of the quantization. The quantum layer can form a two-dimensional quantum well or contain structural elements of lower dimensionality, such as quantum wires or quantum dots or combinations of these structures.
In addition, it may also be contemplated to use a photoluminescence-active layer, e.g. a foreign-atom-doped InGaN layer, as active layer 6.
The layers surrounding the active layer 6 (n- and p-waveguide layers respectively 5 and 8, n-cladding layer 4, superlattice 9 as a p-cladding layer, and barrier layer 7) have a larger band gap than the active layer 6. This causes a concentration or confinement of charge carriers and/or fields on the active layer 6. The number of layers provided for this purpose is not fixed at the number shown in the figure (i.e., five layers), but is in principle arbitrary.
Furthermore, the layers surrounding the active layer 6 form a waveguide for the radiation generated in the active layer 6. Good waveguiding properties are obtained if the refractive index decreases away from the active layer 6 in a direction perpendicular thereto. Since GaN has a higher refractive index than AlGaN, the n- and p-waveguide layers respectively 5 and 8 that are disposed closer to the active layer 6 are implemented as GaN layers in the exemplary embodiment. n-cladding layer 4 and superlattice 9 as a p-cladding layer preferably contain aluminum.
On the side of active layer 6 facing toward the substrate 1 (i.e., the n-doped side), the waveguide layer 5 can be implemented for example as an Si-doped GaN layer and the cladding layer 4 as an Si-doped AlGaN layer. On the side of active layer 6 facing away from the substrate 1 (i.e., the p-doped side), analogously, a magnesium (Mg) doped GaN layer can be used as waveguide layer 8. To prevent the direct recombination of electrons diffusing out of the active layer 6 into the waveguide layer 8 with the holes that are present there, barrier layer 7 is additionally provided between the two layers. This can be implemented in the form of a preferably highly p-doped AlGaN layer, which is typically fashioned as much thinner than n- and p-waveguide layers respectively 5 and 8, n-cladding layer 4 or superlattice 9.
The p-side cladding layer is constituted by superlattice 9.
In the exemplary embodiment of
In the GaN-based material system, the superlattice 9, as a p-cladding layer, can be composed for example of alternating Mg-doped GaN layers and Mg-doped AlGaN layers. Due to the high activation energy of the Mg doping atoms, the electrical conductivity of p-doped layers is low. In addition, AlGaN has a larger band gap than GaN and, due to its lower doping efficiency, a lower conductivity. The doping efficiency specifies the concentration in which dopants are actually incorporated by the material and what fraction of the incorporated dopant atoms theoretically (i.e. ignoring temperature-induced filling effects) are actually able to contribute to conductivity. Doping efficiency depends, among other things, on which lattice sites or interlattice sites the doping atoms occupy.
According to the invention, layers 9a, 9b of the superlattice 9 contain dopants in predefined concentrations, with the superlattice 9 comprising layers 9a, 9b that are doped with different dopants.
Through the use of more highly and more efficiently dopable, and therefore more conductive, GaN layers, the superlattice 9 can, with an effectively equal refractive index, have a higher conductivity than a p-doped pure AlGaN cladding layer. An effectively equal refractive index can be obtained by having the aluminum content of the AlGaN layers used in the superlattice 9 be higher than that of the pure AlGaN cladding layer.
Instead of a GaN/AlGaN superlattice 9, a superlattice 9 is also conceivable in which AlxGa1-x N/AlyGa1-yN layers, where 0≦x, y≦1 and x≠y, are alternately stacked. It is also possible to use In instead of Al in all or some layers of the superlattice 9. Superlattices 9 in which three or more different layer types are alternately stacked are also conceivable.
It is further conceivable to use a superlattice for the n-doped AlGaN cladding layer 4. Given the generally higher conductivity of n-doped layers, the advantage in this case does not lie primarily in higher vertical conductivity. However, advantages are to be gained from a potential reduction of the strains induced in the active layer 6. A further advantage, which is relevant particularly in the case of lateral current injection, derives from the increased lateral electrical conductivity of a superlattice.
The superlattice 9 may, for example due to its Al content, cause strains in the active layer 6. Granted, these strains may be reduced by the GaN waveguide layer 8 located between the superlattice 9 and the active layer 6, but not necessarily to a sufficient extent. This is especially true because the thickness of the GaN waveguide layer 8, on which any reduction of induced strain depends, is predefined on the basis of the requirements placed on the optical waveguide properties.
According to the invention, the content of Al and also In, which also has effects on induced strain in the active layer 6, is not constant within the layers of at least one type in the superlattice 9, thus making it possible to adapt the superlattice 9 in the best possible manner to the countervailing requirements of good waveguiding and low induced strain. Detailed descriptions of corresponding superlattices, in which the content of at least one element (here Al and/or In) varies within layers of one or more types in the superlattice, are provided below in connection with the exemplary embodiments of
The superlattice is formed in each case by a multiplicity of alternately stacked layers of different types a, b and in some cases also c, d, wherein the layer of the superlattice beginning at z=0 and located closest to the active layer is, by definition, of type a.
Represented in
A further advantage of a superlattice in which the Al content cAl varies linearly or, more generally, in an irreversible and unequivocal manner, with the position of a layer in the superlattice is gained in the component manufacturing process. For contact application or waveguiding, it is often necessary to make ridges in a semiconductor structure. In many material systems, wet chemical etching is used in combination with so-called etch stop layers to ensure a defined depth for the ridges. The AlGaN material system is resistant to wet chemical etching processes, however, so only the less material-selective dry etch process can normally be used in that case. If the Al content of the ablated material is measured during the etching process, an in situ depth determination can be made regarding the relationship between the Al content cAl of the layers in the superlattice and their position in the superlattice. The Al content of the ablated material can be measured by mass spectrometry, for example.
b shows an exemplary embodiment of a GaN/AlGaN superlattice in which the Al content cAl in the AlGaN layers within the superlattice exhibits a maximum of about 17% and decreases to both sides. Strains to both sides of the superlattice are reduced in this way; in the illustrated example, the maximum is not reached exactly in the center of the superlattice, and the layer closest to an active layer has a lower Al content cAl than the layer farthest from the active layer.
Generalized, the variation of the Al content cAl within a superlattice can be described by an (envelope) function that gives the Al content cAl of a layer as a function of the position of that layer. For this purpose, either a common function can be defined for all layer types a, b, etc., or an individual function can be defined for each layer type. Any arbitrary function curve is theoretically possible, including a nonlinear curve, for example.
In the example of
In the examples illustrated in
Illustrated in
In the example of
In the exemplary embodiments of
The description of the invention with reference to the described exemplary embodiments is not to be understood as restricting the invention thereto. Rather, the invention also encompasses combination with all other features recited in the exemplary embodiments and the rest of the description, even if such combination is not the subject matter of a claim.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
10 2006 034 820 | Jul 2006 | DE | national |
10 2006 046 237 | Sep 2006 | DE | national |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
4839899 | Burnham et al. | Jun 1989 | A |
4882734 | Scifres et al. | Nov 1989 | A |
4984242 | Scifres et al. | Jan 1991 | A |
5027164 | Awano | Jun 1991 | A |
5128728 | Liu | Jul 1992 | A |
5198682 | Wu et al. | Mar 1993 | A |
5319657 | Otsuka et al. | Jun 1994 | A |
5395793 | Charbonneau et al. | Mar 1995 | A |
5497012 | Moll | Mar 1996 | A |
5570386 | Capasso et al. | Oct 1996 | A |
5588015 | Yang | Dec 1996 | A |
5936989 | Capasso et al. | Aug 1999 | A |
6046464 | Schetzina | Apr 2000 | A |
6172382 | Nagahama et al. | Jan 2001 | B1 |
6175123 | Kano | Jan 2001 | B1 |
6455870 | Wang et al. | Sep 2002 | B1 |
6489636 | Goetz et al. | Dec 2002 | B1 |
6541798 | Koike et al. | Apr 2003 | B2 |
6617061 | Koike et al. | Sep 2003 | B2 |
6649942 | Hata et al. | Nov 2003 | B2 |
6849864 | Nagahama et al. | Feb 2005 | B2 |
6849881 | Harle et al. | Feb 2005 | B1 |
7106090 | Harle et al. | Sep 2006 | B2 |
7556974 | Harle et al. | Jul 2009 | B2 |
7609737 | Matsumura et al. | Oct 2009 | B2 |
20010028668 | Fukunaga et al. | Oct 2001 | A1 |
20020008245 | Goetz et al. | Jan 2002 | A1 |
20020190259 | Goetz et al. | Dec 2002 | A1 |
20020190263 | Hata et al. | Dec 2002 | A1 |
20030010993 | Nakamura et al. | Jan 2003 | A1 |
20030042479 | Tsuchiya | Mar 2003 | A1 |
20030118066 | Bour et al. | Jun 2003 | A1 |
20030178633 | Flynn et al. | Sep 2003 | A1 |
20030197188 | Watatani et al. | Oct 2003 | A1 |
20030235224 | Ohlander | Dec 2003 | A1 |
20040051107 | Nagahama et al. | Mar 2004 | A1 |
20040208213 | Lichtenstein et al. | Oct 2004 | A1 |
20050029506 | Lee et al. | Feb 2005 | A1 |
20050045895 | Emerson et al. | Mar 2005 | A1 |
20050051861 | Shi et al. | Mar 2005 | A1 |
20050056824 | Bergmann et al. | Mar 2005 | A1 |
20050116216 | Harle et al. | Jun 2005 | A1 |
20050116261 | Harle et al. | Jun 2005 | A1 |
20050142682 | Ishibashi et al. | Jun 2005 | A1 |
20050151255 | Ando et al. | Jul 2005 | A1 |
20050213627 | Masselink et al. | Sep 2005 | A1 |
20060011938 | Debray et al. | Jan 2006 | A1 |
20060256825 | Matsumura et al. | Nov 2006 | A1 |
20060289854 | Harle et al. | Dec 2006 | A1 |
20080025360 | Eichler et al. | Jan 2008 | A1 |
20080049801 | Eichler et al. | Feb 2008 | A1 |
20080054247 | Eichler et al. | Mar 2008 | A1 |
20080054252 | Eichler et al. | Mar 2008 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
102 13 395 | Oct 2002 | DE |
0 358 842 | Mar 1990 | EP |
0 378 919 | Jul 1990 | EP |
0874403 | Oct 1998 | EP |
0 881 666 | Dec 1998 | EP |
1 018 770 | Jul 2000 | EP |
1 215 781 | Jun 2002 | EP |
1 220 304 | Jul 2002 | EP |
1 670 106 | Jun 2006 | EP |
1 883 140 | Jan 2008 | EP |
1 883 141 | Jan 2008 | EP |
1883140 | Jan 2008 | EP |
1883141 | Jan 2008 | EP |
2 396 054 | Jun 2004 | GB |
60-145686 | Aug 1985 | JP |
10-22524 | Jan 1998 | JP |
11-251684 | Sep 1999 | JP |
2000-91708 | Mar 2000 | JP |
2000-244070 | Sep 2000 | JP |
2008-034850 | Feb 2008 | JP |
2008-034851 | Feb 2008 | JP |
2008-034852 | Feb 2008 | JP |
2008034850 | Feb 2008 | JP |
2008034851 | Feb 2008 | JP |
2008034852 | Feb 2008 | JP |
WO 0058999 | Oct 2000 | WO |
WO 2004084366 | Oct 2004 | WO |
WO 2006068376 | Jun 2006 | WO |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20080054247 A1 | Mar 2008 | US |