AlGaN/GaN HEMT on 3C-SiC/Low-Resistivity Si Substrate for Microwave Applications

A detailed investigation of DC and RF performance of AlGaN/GaN HEMT on 3C-SiC/low resistive silicon (LR-Si) substrate by introducing a thick GaN layer is reported in this paper. The hetero-epitaxial growth is achieved by metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) on a commercially prepared 6-inch LR-Si substrate via a 3C-SiC intermediate layer. The reported HEMT exhibited very low RF loss and thermally stable amplifier characteristics with the introduction of a thick GaN layer. The temperature-dependent small-signal and large-signal characteristics verified the effectiveness of the thick GaN layer on LR-Si, especially in reduction of RF loss even at high temperatures. In summary, a high potential of the reported device is confirmed for microwave applications.