A detailed study on the microstructural changes that occur on annealing of Au/Pt/Ti ohmiic contacts to n-type InGaAs has been carried out. The metal layers were deposited sequentially by electron beam evaporation onto InGaAs, doped with Zn to a level of 7 x 1018 cm -3, that was epitaxially grown on ( 1 0 0~> InP substrates. The deposition sequenc.e and metal layer thicknesses were: Ti (25 or 30 nm), Pt (25 or 30 nm) and Au (250 or 300 nm). Samples were annealed at temperatures ranging from 250-425 °C in a nitrogen atmosphere. As-deposited contacts were Schottky barriers, while a minimum contact resistance of 2 × 10 -5 O cm 2 was obtained by annealing in the 375-425 °C range. Annealing resulted in the inward diffusion of Ti and outward diffusion of In and As, leading to the formation of TiAs, metallic In and Ga-rich InGaAs at the Ti/InGaAs interface. The Pt diffusion barrier was effective in preventing In diffusion into the outer Au layer and minimizing Au diffusion to the semiconductor.
IntroductionDuring device operation, electrical communication links between the active regions of semiconductor devices and the external circuit are provided by metal/ semiconductor contacts. Ohmic contacts on InPbased materials are essential for electronic devices such as field effect transistors (FET), junction field effect transistors (JFET), high electron mobility transistors (HEMT) and heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBT), as well as for photonic devices, such as long-wavelength laser diodes, light-emitting diodes (LED) and photoelectronic and solar cells. Semiconductor devices are being continually scaled down in size, and operated at higher current density and elevated temperature, placing ever-increasing demands on ohmic contact performance. The main ohmic contact requirements are low contact resistance and high thermal stability, both of which are affected by the metallization microstructures, as well as good adhesion and a shallow reacted zone at the metallization/semiconductor interface. It is essential to understand the relationship between the microstructure and the electrical properties of the metal/semiconductor contacts in order to fabricate high-quality and reliable ohmic contacts. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) combined with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy is one of the best techniques to monitor and analyse the microstructural changes that occur during annealing. It allows direct observation of interfaces and provides both crystallographic and chemical composition information with high spacial resolution in three dimensions.