GaAs-Based Nanoneedle Light Emitting Diode and Avalanche Photodiode Monolithically Integrated on a Silicon Substrate

• Published in: Nano letters 2011-02, Vol.11 (2), p.385-390
• Main Authors: Chuang, Linus C, Sedgwick, Forrest G, Chen, Roger, Ko, Wai Son, Moewe, Michael, Ng, Kar Wei, Tran, Thai-Truong D, Chang-Hasnain, Connie
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Arsenicals - chemistry; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Crystallization - methods; Electronics; Equipment Design; Equipment Failure Analysis; Exact sciences and technology; Gallium - chemistry; Lighting - instrumentation; Materials science; Nanocrystalline materials; Nanoscale materials and structures: fabrication and characterization; Nanostructures - chemistry; Nanostructures - ultrastructure; Nanotechnology - instrumentation; Optoelectronic devices; Particle Size; Photometry - instrumentation; Physics; Semiconductor electronics. Microelectronics. Optoelectronics. Solid state devices; Semiconductors; Silicon - chemistry; Systems Integration
• ISSN: 1530-6984; 1530-6992
• DOI: 10.1021/nl102988w

Monolithic integration of III−V compound semiconductor devices with silicon CMOS integrated circuits has been hindered by large lattice mismatches and incompatible processing due to high III−V epitaxy temperatures. We report the first GaAs-based avalanche photodiodes (APDs) and light emitting diodes, directly grown on silicon at a very low, CMOS-compatible temperature and fabricated using conventional microfabrication techniques. The APDs exhibit an extraordinarily large multiplication factor at low voltage resulting from the unique needle shape and growth mode.