Red micro-size light-emitting diodes (μLEDs) less than 10 × 10 μm2 are crucial for augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) applications. However, they remain very challenging since the common AlInGaP red μLEDs with such small size suffer from a dramatic reduction in the external quantum efficiency. In this work, we demonstrate ultra-small 5 × 5 μm2 607 nm amber μLEDs using InGaN materials, which show an EQE over 2% and an ultra-low reverse current of 10−9 A at −5 V. This demonstration suggests promising results of ultra-small InGaN μLEDs for AR and VR displays.
We have fabricated μLEDs of mesa sizes 10 × 10 and 15 × 15 μm2 on native (2021¯) semipolar substrates and on epitaxial lateral overgrown (ELO) wings of the (2021¯) substrate. The ELO μLEDs exhibited very low leakage current (less than 10−10 A) under forward bias (V < 2 V) and at reverse bias voltages, which was a reduction in several orders of magnitude when compared with planar μLEDs under the same fabrication and sidewall passivation scheme. Electrical characterization revealed that the mesa sidewall is less damaged in plasma dry etching in the ELO μLEDs due to a lower material defect density than the planar μLEDs. Moreover, the ELO μLEDs showed improved optical performance over the planar μLEDs.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.