GaN Semi-Insulating Substrates

Nitride based semiconductors offer a wide range of electronic and optical properties that will permit greatly improved performance of electronic, photonic and optoelectronic devices and circuits. GaN-based LEDs are now a commercial product. Manyinteresting demonstrations have been made in the areas of high power electronic devices, specifically AlGaN/GaN HEMTs. However, performance and commercialization of these and other electronic devices have been limited in large measure by the fact thatthere is no native GaN substrate and thus growth must be performed on non-GaN substrates. This is especially true for high frequency and high power electronic circuits that require large-area, semi-insulating substrates. This proposal describes a novelapproach to eliminate these defects, and make large area semi-insulating GaN substrates at commercially acceptable cost which are TCE matched to the device layers and provide high thermal conductivity. This development will result is a process to makelarge area semi-insulting GaN substrates with improved characteristics at a low cost, permitting widespread use of nitrides in both Government and commercial applications.