Optical characteristics of nanocrystalline Al{sub x}Ga{sub 1−x}N thin films deposited by hollow cathode plasma-assisted atomic layer deposition

Journal Article · Thu May 15 00:00:00 EDT 2014 · Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology. A, Vacuum, Surfaces and Films

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1116/1.4870381· OSTI ID:22258571

Goldenberg, Eda ^[1]; Ozgit-Akgun, Cagla; Biyikli, Necmi ^[2]; Kemal Okyay, Ali ^[3]

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1. UNAM – National Nanotechnology Research Center, Bilkent University, Ankara 06800 (Turkey)
2. Institute of Materials Science and Nanotechnology, Bilkent University, Ankara 06800 (Turkey)
3. Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Bilkent University, Ankara 06800 (Turkey)

Gallium nitride (GaN), aluminum nitride (AlN), and Al{sub x}Ga{sub 1−x}N films have been deposited by hollow cathode plasma-assisted atomic layer deposition at 200 °C on c-plane sapphire and Si substrates. The dependence of film structure, absorption edge, and refractive index on postdeposition annealing were examined by x-ray diffraction, spectrophotometry, and spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements, respectively. Well-adhered, uniform, and polycrystalline wurtzite (hexagonal) GaN, AlN, and Al{sub x}Ga{sub 1−x}N films were prepared at low deposition temperature. As revealed by the x-ray diffraction analyses, crystallite sizes of the films were between 11.7 and 25.2 nm. The crystallite size of as-deposited GaN film increased from 11.7 to 12.1 and 14.4 nm when the annealing duration increased from 30 min to 2 h (800 °C). For all films, the average optical transmission was ∼85% in the visible (VIS) and near infrared spectrum. The refractive indices of AlN and Al{sub x}Ga{sub 1−x}N were lower compared to GaN thin films. The refractive index of as-deposited films decreased from 2.33 to 2.02 (λ = 550 nm) with the increased Al content x (0 ≤ x ≤ 1), while the extinction coefficients (k) were approximately zero in the VIS spectrum (>400 nm). Postdeposition annealing at 900 °C for 2 h considerably lowered the refractive index value of GaN films (2.33–1.92), indicating a significant phase change. The optical bandgap of as-deposited GaN film was found to be 3.95 eV, and it decreased to 3.90 eV for films annealed at 800 °C for 30 min and 2 h. On the other hand, this value increased to 4.1 eV for GaN films annealed at 900 °C for 2 h. This might be caused by Ga{sub 2}O{sub 3} formation and following phase change. The optical bandgap value of as-deposited Al{sub x}Ga{sub 1−x}N films decreased from 5.75 to 5.25 eV when the x values decreased from 1 to 0.68. Furthermore, postdeposition annealing did not affect the bandgap of Al-rich films.

• OSTI ID: 22258571
• Journal Information: Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology. A, Vacuum, Surfaces and Films, Vol. 32, Issue 3; Other Information: (c) 2014 American Vacuum Society; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0734-2101
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
ABSORPTION
ALUMINIUM NITRIDES
ANNEALING
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
DEPOSITION
ELLIPSOMETRY
GALLIUM NITRIDES
GALLIUM OXIDES
HOLLOW CATHODES
INFRARED SPECTRA
NANOSTRUCTURES
PLASMA
POLYCRYSTALS
REFRACTIVE INDEX
SPECTROPHOTOMETRY
SUBSTRATES
THIN FILMS
X-RAY DIFFRACTION