What is Gallium Nitride?
Gallium Nitride is a binary III/V direct bandgap semiconductor that is well suited for high-power transistors capable of operating at high temperatures. It has been commonly used in light-emitting diodes (LEDs) since the 1990s. Gallium Nitride emits blue light, which is used for Blu-ray disc reading. In addition, Gallium Nitride is used in semiconductor power devices, RF components, lasers, and photonics. In the future, we will see GaN in sensor technology.

In 2006, enhancement-mode GaN transistors (sometimes called GaN FETs) began to be manufactured by growing a thin layer of GaN on the AlN layer of a standard silicon wafer using metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). The AlN layer acts as a buffer layer between the substrate and the GaN.
This new process enables GaN transistors to be produced in the same existing factories as silicon, using nearly identical manufacturing processes. By using known processes, this enables similarly low manufacturing costs and lowers the barrier to smaller transistors with much improved performance.

To explain further, all semiconductor materials have what is called a bandgap. This is the energy range where electrons cannot exist in a solid. Simply put, the bandgap relates to the ability of a solid material to conduct electricity. Gallium nitride has a bandgap of 3.4 eV, while silicon has a bandgap of 1.12 eV. Gallium nitride's wider bandgap means it can withstand higher voltages and higher temperatures than silicon MOSFETs. This wide bandgap enables gallium nitride to be used in optoelectronic high-power and high-frequency devices.

The ability to operate at higher temperatures and voltages than gallium arsenide (GaAs) transistors also makes GaN an ideal power amplifier for microwave and terahertz (ThZ) devices, such as imaging and sensing, future markets.

The gap is 1.12 eV. The wider bandgap of GaN means it can withstand higher voltages and higher temperatures than silicon MOSFETs. This wide bandgap enables GaN to be used in optoelectronic high-power and high-frequency devices.

The ability to operate at higher temperatures and voltages than gallium arsenide (GaAs) transistors also makes GaN an ideal power amplifier for microwave and terahertz (ThZ) devices, such as imaging and sensing, future markets.

What advantages does gallium nitride bring us? Advantages of gallium nitride