Thermal stability of contacts on AlGaN-based UV photodetectors

The III-V nitrides (GaN and AlGaN) wide band gap semiconductors have been recognized recently as a very important technological material system for fabricating optoelectronic devices operating in the blue/ultraviolet (UV) spectral region and electronic devices capable of operating under high-power and high-temperature conditions. These materials are remarkably tolerant to aggressive environments, due to its thermal stability and radiation hardness and are excellent photodetector materials to cover the 240-360 nm range. A key advantage of III-nitrides detectors over competing devices based on semiconductors with smaller bandgaps is the long wavelength response cut-off, which is directly related to the bandgap of the material in the active region and thus does not require external filters. Metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodiodes are of interest for many applications because of their relatively simple fabrication process, low dark currents, low noise, and fast response time. In this work, AlGaN-based MSM photodetectors with nickel (Ni) Schottky contacts were fabricated and characterized. A comparative study of the photodiodes; characteristics were carried out. The thermal stability of the contacts at various annealing temperatures (300degreesC-700degreesC) was investigated. Cryogenic cooling after heat treatment was also performed to determine the effects of this treatment on the electrical characteristics of the devices. Electrical characterization was performed by current-voltage (I-V) measurement to investigate the Schottky contact properties of the photodetectors.