Effects of chemical and plasma surface treatments on the O2-annealed Ni/Au contact to p-Gan

The effects of boiling Aqua Regia (AQ), N2/Cl2 plasma followed by AQ and O2 plasma followed by AQ surface treatments prior to Ni/Au (20 nm/20 nm) metallization to p-GaN:Mg (∼ 3 × 1017 cm− 3) have been investigated. N2/Cl2 plasma was employed in a bid to lower the Ga/N and O/Ga ratios of the GaN surface to improve the contact properties to p-GaN, while O2 plasma was employed as an alternative to incorporate O into the Ni/Au system. Results show that a low Ga/N ratio does not necessarily correspond to a better contact. The positive effect of O2 over N2 anneal is observed only for the AQ-treated sample, although the mechanisms responsible for its positive effect: NiO formation and Ni/Au layer-reversal were observed for all O2-annealed contacts. We conclude that the effect of O2 anneal on the Ni/Au contact is dependant on the p-GaN surface prior to metallization.