Precisely controlled morphology of GaN nanorods was obtained on a thin AlN seed layer and their height increased as the diameter of the mask openings decreased.
Wide bandgap semiconductors are increasingly important for bioimaging applications, as they can possess good biocompatibility and host a large range of fluorescent defects spanning the visible to infrared. Gallium nitride is one promising host for photostable fluorophores. In particular, neodymium (Nd)-doped gallium nitride (GaN) shows bright near-infrared fluorescence and narrow room temperature linewidth and is therefore a candidate material for fluorescent probes for bioimaging. To explore the conditions necessary to generate biomarkers based on Nd:GaN, this paper reports the room temperature photoluminescence (PL) properties of small ensembles of Nd ions implanted into the nanoscale regions of GaN epilayers. The minimum volume of Nd-implanted GaN that can be optically detected in this study is about 8×10 4 nm 3 and the minimum detected ensemble of Nd ions is about 4×10 3 , although not all of implanted Nd ions activate as luminescence centers. We show from the PL excitation spectra that the strongest resonant excitation appears at 619 nm, attributed to the 4 I 9/2 → 4 G 5/2 ( 4 G 7/2 ) transition in the 4 f -shell. We measure the luminescence lifetime to be several tens of microseconds. We also identify the presence of a different excitation mechanism from the resonant excitation when excited below 510 nm (above 2.43 eV).
Mg diffusion is a common problem in GaN devices with p–n junctions. Although this impurity diffusion is reported to occur through threading dislocations (TDs), no direct evidence has yet been obtained. Therefore, we tried the direct observation of Mg diffusion by atom probe tomography (APT) analysis. The n-type drift layer of the fabricated p–n diode was exposed, and etch pits were formed on the drift layer to identify the TD position. The APT analysis around TDs was carried out by lifting out the drift layer around specific etch pits using a focused ion beam to include TDs. The relationship between the etch pit shape and the TD type was confirmed by cross-sectional scanning transmission electron microscopy observation. The APT analysis of two types of etch pits formed on the mixed dislocations was performed, and Mg diffusion was clearly observed through the mixed dislocations. In this work, we show direct evidence of Mg diffusion via mixed dislocations in GaN p–n diodes and its effect on reverse leakage current.
The development of pulsed electron sources is applied to electron microscopes or electron beam lithography and is effective in expanding the functions of such devices. The laser photocathode can generate short pulsed electrons with high emittance, and the emittance can be increased by changing the cathode substrate from a metal to compound semiconductor. Among the substrates, nitride-based semiconductors with a negative electron affinity (NEA) have good advantages in terms of vacuum environment and cathode lifetime. In the present study, we report the development of a photocathode electron gun that utilizes photoelectron emission from a NEA-InGaN substrate by pulsed laser excitation, and the purpose is to apply it to material nanofabrication and high-speed observation using a pulsed transmission electron microscope (TEM) equipped with it.
