Heavy Ion-Induced Degradation in Gallium Nitride High Electron Mobility Transistors

Le résumé fourni par la source

This paper investigates single event effects in enhancement mode GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) and presents a physical mechanism for catastrophic single-event burnout (SEB). The primary failure mode proposed is the formation of a conductive leakage path within the semi-insulating GaN buffer layer, which effectively shorts the drain and source while bypassing gate control. The mechanism, attributed to charge storage and subsequent energy release in the GaN buffer following a heavy ion strike, is corroborated by both failure analysis and Synopsys TCAD simulations. Experimental data were gathered using Kr, Pr, Xe, and Au ions at Texas A&M University Cyclotron’s 15 and 25 MeV/u beams with varying bias voltages and incident angles. Commercial-grade EPC2204 devices exhibited catastrophic SEB at maximum rated voltage (100 V). These devices also showed significant non-catastrophic leakage current degradation with increases exceeding 20 μA. Under high-LET irradiation, the space-rated FBG10N30B devices demonstrated no SEB and only minor increases in leakage current (approximately 2 μA).

Ce résumé expose les affirmations des auteurs. BNTIC ne l’interprète pas comme une validation indépendante des résultats.