Demonstration of Common-Emitter Operation in AlGaN/SiC Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors

• Published in: IEEE electron device letters Vol. 31; no. 9; pp. 942 - 944
• Main Authors: Miyake, Hiroki, Kimoto, T, Suda, Jun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY IEEE 01.09.2010; Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
• Subjects: Aluminum gallium nitride; Aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN); Aluminum gallium nitrides; Aluminum nitride; Applied sciences; common-emitter mode; Compound structure devices; Current density; current gain; Devices; Electronics; Electrons; Emitters (electron); Exact sciences and technology; Fabrication; Gallium nitride; Gallium nitrides; heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT); Heterojunction bipolar transistors; III-V semiconductor materials; Photonic band gap; Semiconductor devices; Semiconductor electronics. Microelectronics. Optoelectronics. Solid state devices; Silicon carbide; silicon carbide (SiC); Superlattices; Transistors; Common emitter; common-emitter mode; Transmitter; Band offset; Heterojunction bipolar transistors; Aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN); Current gain; Superlattice; heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT); silicon carbide (SiC)
• ISSN: 0741-3106; 1558-0563
• DOI: 10.1109/LED.2010.2052012

We report here on the fabrication and characterization of new aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN)/silicon carbide heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs). In the HBTs, AlN/GaN short-period superlattice (quasi-AlGaN) was employed as the widegap emitter. We have successfully demonstrated band-offset control and the first common-emitter-mode operation (β ~ 2.7) in the HBTs.