Opto-electronic and electronic devices using an N-face or M-plane gallium nitride substrate prepared via ammonothermal growth
AssigneesThe Regents of the University of California, Japan Science and Technology Agency
InventorsTadao Hashimoto, Hitoshi Sato, Shuji Nakamura
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Abstract
A method for growing III-V nitride films having an N-face or M-plane using an ammonothermal growth technique. The method comprises using an autoclave, heating the autoclave, and introducing ammonia into the autoclave to produce smooth N-face or M-plane Gallium Nitride films and bulk GaN.
Claims40
A method for directly growing a non-Ga-polar surface of gallium nitride (GaN), comprising:
- placing a seed crystal of GaN having an exposed non-Ga-polar surface of GaN into an autoclave;
- placing a mineralizer into the autoclave;
- placing a source into the autoclave;
- adding ammonia to the autoclave;
- heating the autoclave;
- and
- ammonothermally growing the GaN in the heated autoclave, using the mineralizer, source and ammonia, wherein the exposed non-Ga-polar surface of the GaN is smoother than a Ga-polar surface of the GaN.
A method of fabricating a gallium nitride (GaN) substrate, comprising:
- ammonothermally growing a GaN substrate resulting in an exposed N-polar (N-face) or M-plane surface that is smoother than a Ga-polar (Ga-face) surface of the GaN substrate.
A method of fabricating an opto-electronic device comprising:
- fabricating a GaN substrate from a GaN bulk crystal grown ammonothermally on a GaN seed, wherein a growth surface of the GaN bulk crystal is not a Ga-polar surface and the growth surface as grown is smoother than a Ga-polar surface;
- and
- growing one or more group III nitride layers on the growth surface of the GaN substrate.
A method for fabricating a GaN layer, comprising:
- utilizing an N-polar surface or an M-plane surface of the GaN layer as a growth surface, wherein the N-polar surface or the M-plane surface is prepared and directly exposed using an ammonothermal growth technique and the N-polar surface or the M-plane surface is smoother than a Ga-polar surface of the GaN layer.
A method for growing a group-III nitride layer, comprising:
- ammonothermally growing a group-III nitride layer on a substrate, wherein the group-III nitride layer comprises an N-face of a C-plane (000-1) or a M-plane {10-10} that is directly exposed as a result of the growth of the group-III nitride layer and the N-face of the C-plane (000-1) or the M-plane {10-10} is smoother than a Ga-face of the C-plane (0001).
A method for fabricating a GaN substrate, comprising:
- directly growing a GaN substrate with an exposed N-face or M-plane surface that is of device quality using an ammonothermal growth method, wherein the exposed N-face or M-plane surface is smoother than a Ga-polar surface of the GaN substrate.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.