Open AccessPolarization Enhanced GaN Avalanche Photodiodes With p-type In0.05Ga0.95N Layer
Author(s) -
Haiping Wang,
Haifan You,
Danfeng Pan,
Dunjun Chen,
Hai Lu,
Rong Zhang,
Youdou Zheng
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
ieee photonics journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.725
H-Index - 73
eISSN - 1943-0655
pISSN - 1943-0647
DOI - 10.1109/jphot.2020.2969991
Subject(s) - engineered materials, dielectrics and plasmas , photonics and electrooptics
In this letter, novel heterostructure p-i-n GaN avalanche photodiodes (APDs) with p-type In0.05Ga0.95N layer are proposed and analyzed through Silvaco Atlas simulations. The introduction of the In0.05Ga0.95N layer generates a negative polarization charge at the p-In0.05Ga0.95N/i-GaN heterojunction interface via the piezoelectric polarization effect. Three times higher hole concentration in the p-In0.05Ga0.95N layer is obtained due to the smaller activation energy of the Mg dopant. Induced polarization charge and increased hole concentration work together to reduce the voltage drop in the p-In0.05Ga0.95N layer and enhance the electric field intensity in the i-GaN layer. The calculated results show that the heterostructure APD demonstrates a reduced operating voltage of more than 26 V and an improved multiplication gain by an order of magnitude in comparison to the conventional one.