Self-consistent depth profiling and imaging of GaN-based transistors using ion microbeams

Using an ion microprobe, a comprehensive lateral and in-depth characterization of a single GaN-based high electron mobility transistor is carried out by means of Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) in combination with particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE). Elemental distribution was obtained for every individual section of the device (wafer, gate and source contact), identifying the basic constituents of the transistor (including the detection of the passivant layer) and checking its homogeneity. A self-consistent analysis of each individual regions of the transistor was carried out with a simultaneous fit of RBS and PIXE spectra with two different beam conditions. Following this approach, the quantification of the atomic content and the layer thicknesses was successfully achieved overcoming the mass-depth ambiguity of certain elements.