Impact of Buffer Layer on Electrical Properties of Bow-Tie Microwave Diodes on the Base of MBE-Grown Modulation-Doped Semiconductor Structure
Bow-tie diodes on the base of modulation-doped semiconductor structures are often used to detect radiation in GHz to THz frequency range. The operation of the bow-tie microwave diodes is based on carrier heating phenomena in an epitaxial semiconductor structure with broken geometrical symmetry. Howe...
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2025-01-01
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| author | Algirdas Sužiedėlis Steponas Ašmontas Jonas Gradauskas Aurimas Čerškus Aldis Šilėnas Andžej Lučun |
| author_facet | Algirdas Sužiedėlis Steponas Ašmontas Jonas Gradauskas Aurimas Čerškus Aldis Šilėnas Andžej Lučun |
| author_sort | Algirdas Sužiedėlis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Bow-tie diodes on the base of modulation-doped semiconductor structures are often used to detect radiation in GHz to THz frequency range. The operation of the bow-tie microwave diodes is based on carrier heating phenomena in an epitaxial semiconductor structure with broken geometrical symmetry. However, the electrical properties of bow-tie diodes are highly dependent on the purity of the grown epitaxial layer—specifically, the minimal number of defects—and the quality of the ohmic contacts. The quality of MBE-grown semiconductor structure depends on the presence of a buffer layer between a semiconductor substrate and an epitaxial layer. In this paper, we present an investigation of the electrical and optical properties of planar bow-tie microwave diodes fabricated using modulation-doped semiconductor structures grown via the MBE technique, incorporating either a GaAs buffer layer or a GaAs–AlGaAs super-lattice buffer between the semi-insulating substrate and the active epitaxial layer. These properties include voltage sensitivity, electrical resistance, I–V characteristic asymmetry, nonlinearity coefficient, and photoluminescence. The investigation revealed that the buffer layer, as well as the illumination with visible light, strongly influences the properties of the bow-tie diodes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-6fda13acee524941b8f6269279f8b8bd |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2073-4352 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Crystals |
| spelling | doaj-art-6fda13acee524941b8f6269279f8b8bd2025-01-24T13:28:08ZengMDPI AGCrystals2073-43522025-01-011515010.3390/cryst15010050Impact of Buffer Layer on Electrical Properties of Bow-Tie Microwave Diodes on the Base of MBE-Grown Modulation-Doped Semiconductor StructureAlgirdas Sužiedėlis0Steponas Ašmontas1Jonas Gradauskas2Aurimas Čerškus3Aldis Šilėnas4Andžej Lučun5Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, LT-10257 Vilnius, LithuaniaCenter for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, LT-10257 Vilnius, LithuaniaCenter for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, LT-10257 Vilnius, LithuaniaCenter for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, LT-10257 Vilnius, LithuaniaCenter for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, LT-10257 Vilnius, LithuaniaCenter for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, LT-10257 Vilnius, LithuaniaBow-tie diodes on the base of modulation-doped semiconductor structures are often used to detect radiation in GHz to THz frequency range. The operation of the bow-tie microwave diodes is based on carrier heating phenomena in an epitaxial semiconductor structure with broken geometrical symmetry. However, the electrical properties of bow-tie diodes are highly dependent on the purity of the grown epitaxial layer—specifically, the minimal number of defects—and the quality of the ohmic contacts. The quality of MBE-grown semiconductor structure depends on the presence of a buffer layer between a semiconductor substrate and an epitaxial layer. In this paper, we present an investigation of the electrical and optical properties of planar bow-tie microwave diodes fabricated using modulation-doped semiconductor structures grown via the MBE technique, incorporating either a GaAs buffer layer or a GaAs–AlGaAs super-lattice buffer between the semi-insulating substrate and the active epitaxial layer. These properties include voltage sensitivity, electrical resistance, I–V characteristic asymmetry, nonlinearity coefficient, and photoluminescence. The investigation revealed that the buffer layer, as well as the illumination with visible light, strongly influences the properties of the bow-tie diodes.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/15/1/50modulation-doped semiconductor structuremicrowave bow-tie diodebuffer layersemi-insulating substratemolecular beam epitaxysuper-lattice |
| spellingShingle | Algirdas Sužiedėlis Steponas Ašmontas Jonas Gradauskas Aurimas Čerškus Aldis Šilėnas Andžej Lučun Impact of Buffer Layer on Electrical Properties of Bow-Tie Microwave Diodes on the Base of MBE-Grown Modulation-Doped Semiconductor Structure Crystals modulation-doped semiconductor structure microwave bow-tie diode buffer layer semi-insulating substrate molecular beam epitaxy super-lattice |
| title | Impact of Buffer Layer on Electrical Properties of Bow-Tie Microwave Diodes on the Base of MBE-Grown Modulation-Doped Semiconductor Structure |
| title_full | Impact of Buffer Layer on Electrical Properties of Bow-Tie Microwave Diodes on the Base of MBE-Grown Modulation-Doped Semiconductor Structure |
| title_fullStr | Impact of Buffer Layer on Electrical Properties of Bow-Tie Microwave Diodes on the Base of MBE-Grown Modulation-Doped Semiconductor Structure |
| title_full_unstemmed | Impact of Buffer Layer on Electrical Properties of Bow-Tie Microwave Diodes on the Base of MBE-Grown Modulation-Doped Semiconductor Structure |
| title_short | Impact of Buffer Layer on Electrical Properties of Bow-Tie Microwave Diodes on the Base of MBE-Grown Modulation-Doped Semiconductor Structure |
| title_sort | impact of buffer layer on electrical properties of bow tie microwave diodes on the base of mbe grown modulation doped semiconductor structure |
| topic | modulation-doped semiconductor structure microwave bow-tie diode buffer layer semi-insulating substrate molecular beam epitaxy super-lattice |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/15/1/50 |
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