Ohmic contact to semiconductor
AssigneeSensor Electronics Technology, Inc.
InventorsRemigijus Gaska, Michael Shur, Jinwei Yang, Alexander Dobrinsky, Maxim S. Shatalov
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Abstract
A solution for forming an ohmic contact to a semiconductor layer is provided. A masking material is applied to a set of contact regions on the surface of the semiconductor layer. Subsequently, one or more layers of a device heterostructure are formed on the non-masked region(s) of the semiconductor layer. The ohmic contact can be formed after the one or more layers of the device heterostructure are formed. The ohmic contact formation can be performed at a processing temperature lower than a temperature range within which a quality of a material forming any semiconductor layer in the device heterostructure is damaged.
Claims20
A device heterostructure comprising:
- a semiconductor layer;
- a protruded region located directly on a first region of a surface of the semiconductor layer;
- and
- an ohmic contact located on a set of contact regions of the surface of the semiconductor layer distinct from the first region of the surface of the semiconductor layer, wherein the ohmic contact is formed without etching the semiconductor layer, and wherein the forming includes:
- forming a set of highly conductive semiconducting layers on the set of contact regions, wherein the forming the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers includes grading a molar fraction of at least one element of a material forming the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers with respect to a distance from the set of contact regions;
- and
- forming an ohmic metal on the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers after formation of the protruded region, wherein the forming the ohmic contact is performed at a processing temperature lower than a temperature range within which a quality of a material forming any one of the set of semiconductor layers in the device heterostructure is damaged.
A device comprising:
- a device heterostructure including:
- an ohmic contact to a semiconductor layer in a set of semiconductor layers of the device heterostructure, wherein the ohmic contact includes:
- a set of highly conductive semiconducting layers formed on a set of contact regions of a surface of the semiconductor layer, wherein the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers include a molar fraction of at least one element of a material forming the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers graded with respect to a distance from the set of contact regions, and wherein the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers are lattice matched with the semiconductor layer at an interface of the semiconductor layer and the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers;
- and
- an ohmic metal located on a surface of the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers;
- and
- a protruding region formed on at least one region of the surface of the semiconductor layer distinct from the set of contact regions.
A device comprising:
- a device heterostructure including:
- an n-type group III nitride semiconductor layer;
- an ohmic contact to the n-type group III nitride semiconductor layer, wherein the ohmic contact is located on a first surface of the semiconductor layer, wherein the ohmic contact includes:
- a set of highly conductive group III nitride semiconducting layers, wherein the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers include a molar fraction of at least one element of a material forming the set of highly conductive semiconducting layers graded with respect to a distance from the set of contact regions, and wherein the set of highly conductive group III nitride semiconducting layers are lattice matched with the n-type group III nitride semiconductor layer at an interface of the n-type group III nitride semiconductor layer and the set of highly conductive group III nitride semiconducting layers;
- and
- an ohmic metal located on a surface of the set of highly conductive group III nitride semiconducting layers;
- and
- a protruded region located on the first surface of the n-type group III nitride semiconductor layer adjacent to the ohmic contact.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.