Effect of electromechanical coupling on the strain in AlGaN/GaN heterojunction field effect transistors

The strain in AlGaN/GaN heterojunction field-effect transistors (HFETs) is examined theoretically in the context of the fully coupled equation of state for piezoelectric materials. Using a simple analytical model, it is shown that, in the absence of a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG), the out-of-...

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Veröffentlicht in:Journal of applied physics 2003-09, Vol.94 (6), p.3984-3989
Hauptverfasser: Jogai, B., Albrecht, J. D., Pan, E.
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:The strain in AlGaN/GaN heterojunction field-effect transistors (HFETs) is examined theoretically in the context of the fully coupled equation of state for piezoelectric materials. Using a simple analytical model, it is shown that, in the absence of a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG), the out-of-plane strain obtained without electromechanical coupling is in error by about 30% for an Al fraction of 0.3. This result has consequences for the calculation of quantities that depend directly on the strain tensor. These quantities include the eigenstates and electrostatic potential in AlGaN/GaN heterostructures. It is shown that for an HFET, the electromechanical coupling is screened by the 2DEG. Results for the electromechanical model, including the 2DEG, indicate that the standard (decoupled) strain model is a reasonable approximation for HFET calculations. The analytical results are supported by a self-consistent Schrödinger–Poisson calculation that includes the fully coupled equation of state together with the charge-balance equation.
ISSN:0021-8979
1089-7550
DOI:10.1063/1.1603953