Hydrogen- and carbon-related defects in heavily carbon-doped GaAs induced degradation under minority-carrier injection

GaAs/AlGaAs heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) have attracted much attention because of their high‐speed performance. However, long‐term operation seriously degrades the device characteristics: the current gain decreases and the low‐bias‐leakage current increases. This degradation has long be...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Electronics and communications in Japan 2010-05, Vol.93 (5), p.33-41
Main Authors: Fushimi, Hiroshi, Wada, Kazumi
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aluminum gallium arsenides
C-doped GaAs
charge state effect
Defects
Degradation
Devices
Gallium arsenide
Gallium arsenides
HBT
Heterojunction bipolar transistors
High speed
hydrogen/carbon-related defects
recombination-enhanced defect reaction
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Summary:GaAs/AlGaAs heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) have attracted much attention because of their high‐speed performance. However, long‐term operation seriously degrades the device characteristics: the current gain decreases and the low‐bias‐leakage current increases. This degradation has long been an issue in GaAs‐based devices operated under minority‐carrier injection, such as laser diodes. The cause of degradation is thought to lie in the carbon‐doped base, but this is not yet certain. In this paper the degradation of HBTs is described, especially that of GaAs/AlGaAs HBTs with a heavily carbon‐doped base layer. Two types of device degradation are found, namely, hydrogen‐related degradation and carbon‐related degradation. The mechanisms governing the degradation are discussed in the framework of the recombination‐enhanced defect reaction (REDR) and charge state effect (CSE). © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn, 93(5): 33–41, 2010; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ecj.10208
ISSN:1942-9533
1942-9541
DOI:10.1002/ecj.10208