Patent · US Active

Nitride-based semiconductor device

US7400000B2 · kind B2 · utility

6Cited by
2References
15Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateDec 5, 2005
Grant dateJul 15, 2008
Priority date
Expiry dateJul 12, 2026

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH10H20/816
  • WIPO fieldSemiconductors
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A light-emitting diode is built on a silicon substrate doped with a p-type impurity to possess sufficient conductivity to provide a current path. The p-type silicon substrate has epitaxially grown thereon two superposed buffer layers of aluminum nitride and n-type indium gallium nitride. Further grown epitaxially on the buffer layers is the main semiconductor region of the LED which comprises a lower confining layer of n-type gallium nitride, an active layer for generating light, and an upper confining layer of p-type gallium nitride. In the course of the growth of the main semiconductor region there occurs a thermal diffusion of aluminum, gallium and indium from the buffer layers into the p-type silicon substrate, with the consequent creation of an alloy layer of the diffused metals. Representing p-type impurities in the p-type silicon substrate, these metals do not create a pn junction in the substrate which causes a forward voltage drop.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.