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Etching Technique for the Fabrication of Thin (Al, In, Ga)N Layers

Technology Benefits

Selective removal of desired material without damaging sensitive device layers Facilitates the formation of nitride microcavity structures for optoelectronic devices

Technology Application

Nitride-Based Optoelectronic Devices Nitride-Based Semiconductor Devices  This technology is available for licensing. See below for a selection of the patents and patent applications related to this invention. Please inquire for full patent portfolio status.

Detailed Technology Description

Researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara have developed a safe etching technique for use with (Al, In, Ga)N materials. The method is designed to fabricate free-standing thin nitride wafers or to remove material from thin nitride membranes. It can remove desired material without damaging sensitive device layers, including quantum well layers, and can facilitate the formation of nitride microcavity structures. The technique is applicable to nitride-based optoelectronic and semiconductor devices.

Supplementary Information

Patent Number: US7795146B2
Application Number: US2006403288A
Inventor: Speck, James S. | Haskell, Benjamin A. | Pattison, P. Morgan | Baker, Troy J.
Priority Date: 13 Apr 2005
Priority Number: US7795146B2
Application Date: 13 Apr 2006
Publication Date: 14 Sep 2010
IPC Current: H01L0021461
US Class: 438689 | 438458 | 438705 | 438745
Assignee Applicant: The Regents of the University of California | Japan Science and Technology Agency,Kawaguchi, Saitama, Prefecture
Title: Etching technique for the fabrication of thin (Al, In, Ga)N layers
Usefulness: Etching technique for the fabrication of thin (Al, In, Ga)N layers
Summary: Used in etching of thin epitaxially-grown nitride layers to provide (aluminum, indium, gallium) nitride layer or thin film, optoelectronic device, free-standing substrate, transistor, and non linear optical waveguide (claimed).
Novelty: Etching of nitride layers used in transistors comprises implanting substrate with foreign ions, performing regrowth of nitride structure on implanted substrate, and bonding exposed growth surface of nitride structure to carrier wafer

Industry

Optics

Sub Category

LED/OLED

Application No.

7795146

Others

Background

Current nitride etching techniques face problems such as damaging sensitive device layers, alteration of quantum well layers and large scale roughening of the etched surface.

Additional Technologies by these Inventors

• Reduced Dislocation Density of Non-Polar GaN Grown by Hydride Vapor Phase Epitaxy
• Growth of Planar, Non-Polar, A-Plane GaN by Hydride Vapor Phase Epitaxy
• Cleaved Facet Edge-Emitting Laser Diodes Grown on Semipolar GaN
• Enhancing Growth of Semipolar (Al,In,Ga,B)N Films via MOCVD
• Growth of High-Quality, Thick, Non-Polar M-Plane GaN Films
• Growth of Planar Semi-Polar Gallium Nitride
• Defect Reduction of Non-Polar and Semi-Polar III-Nitrides
• MOCVD Growth of Planar Non-Polar M-Plane Gallium Nitride
• Lateral Growth Method for Defect Reduction of Semipolar Nitride Films
• Improved Manufacturing of Solid State Lasers via Patterning of Photonic Crystals
• Phosphor-Free White Light Source
• Single or Multi-Color High Efficiency LED by Growth Over a Patterned Substrate
• Growth of Semipolar III-V Nitride Films with Lower Defect Density
• Enhanced Optical Polarization of Nitride LEDs by Increased Indium Incorporation
• Semipolar-Based Yellow, Green, Blue LEDs with Improved Performance
• Hexagonal Wurtzite Type Epitaxial Layer with a Low Alkali-Metal Concentration
• Photoelectrochemical Etching for Chip Shaping Of LEDs
• Highly Efficient Blue-Violet III-Nitride Semipolar Laser Diodes
• Defect Reduction in GaN films using in-situ SiNx Nanomask
• Semi-polar LED/LD Devices on Relaxed Template with Misfit Dislocation at Hetero-interface
• Limiting Strain-Relaxation in III-Nitride Heterostructures by Substrate Patterning
• Suppression of Defect Formation and Increase in Critical Thickness by Silicon Doping
• High Efficiency Semipolar AlGaN-Cladding-Free Laser Diodes
• Method for Growing Self-Assembled Quantum Dot Lattices
• Method for Increasing GaN Substrate Area in Nitride Devices
• Flexible Arrays of MicroLEDs using the Photoelectrochemical (PEC) Liftoff Technique
• Optimization of Laser Bar Orientation for Nonpolar Laser Diodes
• Improved Fabrication of Nonpolar InGaN Thin Films, Heterostructures, and Devices
• Growth of High-Performance M-plane GaN Optical Devices
• Method for Enhancing Growth of Semipolar Nitride Devices
• Transparent Mirrorless (TML) LEDs
• Technique for the Nitride Growth of Semipolar Thin Films, Heterostructures, and Semiconductor Devices
• Planar, Nonpolar M-Plane III-Nitride Films Grown on Miscut Substrates
• High-Efficiency, Mirrorless Non-Polar and Semi-Polar Light Emitting Devices
• High Light Extraction Efficiency III-Nitride LED
• Method for Improved Surface of (Ga,Al,In,B)N Films on Nonpolar or Semipolar Subtrates
• Improved Anisotropic Strain Control in Semipolar Nitride Devices
• III-Nitride Tunnel Junction with Modified Interface
• Enhanced Light Extraction LED with a Tunnel Junction Contact Wafer Bonded to a Conductive Oxide
• Hybrid Growth Method for Improved III-Nitride Tunnel Junction Devices
• Calcium Impurity Reduction for Improved Light-Emitting Devices
• Contact Architectures for Tunnel Junction Devices
• Internal Heating for Ammonothermal Growth of Group-III Nitride Crystals
• Methods for Fabricating III-Nitride Tunnel Junction Devices
• Fabricating Nitride Layers
• Vertical Cavity Surface-Emitting Lasers with Continuous Wave Operation

Tech ID/UC Case

21820/2005-509-0

Related Cases

2005-509-0

*Abstract

A safe etching technique for use with (Al, In, Ga)N materials.

*IP Issue Date

Sep 14, 2010

*Principal Investigator

Name: Troy Baker

Department:

Name: Benjamin Haskell

Department:

Name: Paul Pattison

Department:

Name: James Speck

Department:

Country/Region

USA