Suppression of Short-Channel Effects in AlGaN/GaN HEMTs Using SiN Stress-Engineered Technique.

In this work, we present the novel application of SiN stress-engineering techniques for the suppression of short-channel effects in AlGaN/GaN high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs), accompanied by a comprehensive analysis of the underlying mechanisms. The compressive stress SiN passivation significantly enhances the barrier height at the heterojunction beneath the gate, maintaining it above the quasi-Fermi level even as rises to 20 V. As a result, in GaN devices with a gate length of 160 nm, the devices with compressive stress SiN passivation exhibit significantly lower drain-induced barrier lowering (DIBL) factors of 2.

Improvement of DC Performance and RF Characteristics in GaN-Based HEMTs Using SiN Stress-Engineering Technique.

In this work, the DC performance and RF characteristics of GaN-based high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) using the SiN stress-engineered technique were systematically investigated. It was observed that a significant reduction in the peak electric field and an increase in the effective barrier thickness in the devices with compressive SiN passivation contributed to the suppression of Fowler-Nordheim (FN) tunneling. As a result, the gate leakage decreased by more than an order of magnitude, and the breakdown voltage (BV) increased from 44 V to 84 V.