High reactivity of HO vapor on GaN surfaces

Sumiya, Masatomo*; Sumita, Masato*; Tsuda, Yasutaka   ; Sakamoto, Tetsuya; Sang, L.*; Harada, Yoshitomo*; Yoshigoe, Akitaka 

GaN is an attracting material for power-electronic devices. Understanding the oxidation at GaN surface is important for improving metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) devices. In this study, the oxidation at GaN surfaces depending on the GaN crystal planes (+c, -c, and m-plane) was investigated by real time XPS and DFT-MD simulation. We found that HO vapor has the highest reactivity due to the spin interaction between HO and GaN surfaces. The bond length between the Ga and N on the -c GaN surface was increased by OH attacking the back side of three-fold Ga atom. The chemisorption on the m-plane was dominant. The intense reactions of oxidation and AlGaN formation for p-GaN were observed at the interface of the AlO layer deposited by ALD using HO vapor. This study suggests that an oxidant gas other than HO and O should be used to avoid unintentional oxidation during AlGaN atomi layer deposition.