SEMICON West 2016

  The unique material properties of GaN and related materials provide significant opportunities for realizing exceptional levels of device performance, both for conventional devices such as HEMTs and HFETs, as well as for novel and potentially disruptive device designs.  These devices show promise for both existing as well as emerging applications.  Current applications for GaN devices include power conversion and control as well as RF power amplification, while potential future applications include high-performance mixed-signal, millimeter-wave, and sensing applications, to name just a few.  GaN-based device concepts to address the specific needs of each of these areas are under intensive development by groups around the world.  This course will provide a broad overview of the material properties, device structures, fabrication processing issues, and applications surrounding this emerging device technology.  At the material properties level, the III-N compounds offer several unique features that are important to achieving optimum device performance.  The physical origins of these fundamental material properties--and how these properties differ in important ways from other semiconductor material systems--will be described.  Device structures that leverage these unique properties of GaN and related materials, including HEMTs and HFETs, homojunction and heterojunction diodes, and a range of vertical FET concepts, will be described and their strengths and limitations for applications will be explored.  This discussion will also include an overview of fabrication process technology, scaling trends, the impact of process modules on device performance and characteristics, and key technological issues.  Applications for these device technologies will be discussed, and the prospects for future application spaces for nitride-based devices will be examined.