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Lateral P–N Junction Photodiodes Using Lateral Polarity Structure GaN Films: A Theoretical Perspective

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Abstract

In this work, we propose lateral p–n junction self-powered ultraviolet photodiodes using lateral polarity structure GaN (LPS-GaN) films. The design of the proposed photodiode is inspired by the recent demonstrations of obtaining laterally varying doping profiles by controlling the incorporation of donor and acceptor impurities in LPS-GaN. The proposed photodiodes provide a larger area for light absorption near the surface, and at the same time provide a large photocurrent even at zero external bias voltage, thanks to the electric field distribution of the lateral p–n junction. Through technology computer-aided design simulations and semi-analytical calculations, we show that the proposed photodiodes outperform the traditionally popular metal–semiconductor–metal (MSM) GaN photodiodes. The results shown in this study hold promise for realizing solar-blind photodetectors using polar GaN and AlGaN films.

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Acknowledgments

Partial funding for this project came from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Number: 61974149).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, 247667, India

    Hridibrata Pal

  2. Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, 247667, India

    Smriti Singh, Tanmoy Pramanik & Biplab Sarkar

  3. Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Science, Ningbo, 315201, Zhejiang, China

    Chenyu Guo & Wei Guo

  4. Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, Telangana, 502285, India

    Oves Badami

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  1. Hridibrata Pal
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H. Pal and S. Singh contributed equally to this work.

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Correspondence to Biplab Sarkar.

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Pal, H., Singh, S., Guo, C. et al. Lateral P–N Junction Photodiodes Using Lateral Polarity Structure GaN Films: A Theoretical Perspective. J. Electron. Mater. 52, 2148–2157 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-022-10166-z

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