Vertical gallium nitride-based power devices are expected to exceed Si and even SiC-based systems with the promise of increased performance and power density. Compared to lateral GaN devices, a vertical topology promotes more efficient scaling towards high-power applications, where both high voltage and high current are necessary. This talk describes our team’s effort towards developing vertical GaN MOSFETs. The results of Sandia’s first-generation device demonstrator serve as a milestone in the path of producing devices rated for 1200-V and 100-A operation.

The vertical GaN trench MOSFET is unique compared to Si- or SiC-alternatives in that the doped layers comprising the source and body regions are grown by epitaxy rather than formed by ion implantation. Challenges with selective-area doping in GaN add additional complexity to the design of a trench MOSFET. In addition, the lack of a high-quality native oxide in GaN means that the gate dielectric must be deposited rather than thermally grown. The devices produced at Sandia rely on atomic-layer-deposited thin films for the gate dielectric (primarily Al₂O₃ or SiO₂). First-generation results demonstrate devices capable of 400 mA/mm drain current, 10⁸ on/off ratio, and a positive threshold voltage near 8 V. More recently, devices capable of blocking 500 V in the off-state have been demonstrated. Device failure in the off-state results from high fields in the gate dielectric, which can be minimized by reducing the trench etch depth or by increasing the voltage rating of the drift region. However, further shielding of the gate dielectric to achieve substantially higher off-state voltages requires significant changes to the device architecture which are reliant on selective-area doping. In addition, device-killing defects either from the starting substrate, the epitaxy, or defects introduced during processing limit yield for large-area devices and present a substantial obstacle to scale devices for high-current operation. Hence, methods for reducing cell pitch and increasing packing density are highly valued. In this talk, we will discuss the path forward for achieving higher breakdown voltages and high-current operation using GaN-specific strategies to achieve better performing devices, as well as some of the challenges for vertical GaN development. This work provides a foundational platform for developing next-generation power electronics that employ wide bandgap, gallium nitride semiconductors.

This work was supported by the Electric Drivetrain Consortium managed by Susan Rogers of DOE’s Vehicle Technologies Office. Sandia National Laboratories is a multi-mission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA0003525. This paper describes objective technical results and analysis. Any subjective views or opinions that might be expressed in the paper do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Department of Energy or the United States Government.