Electron Mobility in Polarization-doped Al$\mathrm{_{0-0.2}}$GaN with a Low Concentration Near 10$\mathrm{^{17}}$ cm$\mathrm{^{-3}}$

TL;DR

This study demonstrates high electron mobility in polarization-doped AlGaN with extremely low carrier concentration, highlighting the effects of dislocation and alloy scattering, and providing insights for power electronics design.

Contribution

It reports the highest mobility in low-doped polarization-induced AlGaN and analyzes scattering mechanisms affecting electron transport at low doping levels.

Findings

Peak mobility of 900 cm²/V·s at 7% Al composition

Dislocation and alloy scattering limit mobility at low doping

Dislocation density below 10^7 cm⁻² is crucial for high mobility

Abstract

In this letter, carrier transport in graded Al$\mathrm{_x}$Ga$\mathrm{_{1-x}}$N with a polarization-induced n-type doping as low as ~ 10$\mathrm{^{17}}$ cm$\mathrm{^{-3}}$ is reported. The graded Al$\mathrm{_x}$Ga$\mathrm{_{1-x}}$N is grown by metal organic chemical vapor deposition on a sapphire substrate and a uniform n-type doping without any intentional doping is realized by linearly varying the Al composition from 0% to 20% over a thickness of 600 nm. A compensating center concentration of ~10$\mathrm{^{17}}$ cm$\mathrm{^{-3}}$ was also estimated. A peak mobility of 900 cm$\mathrm{^2}$/V$\mathrm \cdot$s at room temperature is extracted at an Al composition of ~ 7%, which represents the highest mobility achieved in n-Al$\mathrm{_{0.07}}$GaN with a carrier concentration ~10$\mathrm{^{17}}$ cm$\mathrm{^{-3}}$. Comparison between experimental data and theoretical models shows that, at this low doping concentration, both dislocation scattering and alloy scattering are significant in limiting electron mobility; and that a dislocation density of <10$\mathrm{^7}$ cm$\mathrm{^{-2}}$ is necessary to optimize mobility near 10$\mathrm{^{16}}$ cm$\mathrm{^{-3}}$. The findings in this study provide insight in key elements for achieving high mobility at low doping levels in GaN, a critical parameter in design of novel power electronics taking advantage of polarization doping.