Over 10W/mm High Power Density AlGaN/GaN HEMTs With Small Gate Length by the Stepper Lithography for Ka-Band Applications

This study reports AlGaN/GaN high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) fabricated by the Stepper Lithography on a 4-inch wafer for Ka-Band applications. Small gate length (LG) of 100 nm was achieved through a 2-Step Photolithography Process and the gate region of the AlGaN/GaN HEMT was defined by using two lithography steps to form gamma-shaped gates. The 4-inch AlGaN/GaN HEMT wafer demonstrated high electrical performance uniformity with respect to the maximum drain-source current density (IDSS), the peak extrinsic output transconductance (Gm), and the threshold voltage (Vth). At VDS = 20 V, the AlGaN/GaN HEMT exhibits an IDSS of 1004.2 mA/mm, a Gm value of 363.6 mS/mm, a maximum output power density (POUT (MAX)) of over 10 W/mm, and a power gain of 8.8 dB with a maximum 51.1 % Power-added efficiency (PAE) at 28 GHz in Continuous Wave (CW) mode. The results show the potential of AlGaN/GaN HEMT fabrication with high yield and outstanding RF performance using Stepper Lithography for 5G applications.