18 November 2013

BluGlass commissions former production MOCVD system to grow MQW base structures

BluGlass Ltd of Silverwater, Australia says it has commissioned a former production Thomas Swan metal organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) system capable of producing 19x2 inch (or 5x4 inch or up to a single 8 inch) LED wafer/s in a single growth run. The system has been commissioned and qualified to grow the multi-quantum well (MQW) base structures required for the demonstration of the Brighter LEDs milestone. This milestone involves demonstrating LED performance improvement by growing low temperature remote-plasma chemical vapor deposition (RPCVD) p-GaN on top of MOCVD grown multi-quantum wells (see Figure 1).

Figure 1: Using low temperature p-GaN to achieve brighter LEDs.

InGaN quantum wells are prone to degradation at elevated temperatures in the subsequent MOCVD grown p-GaN process steps, resulting in a loss of LED brightness. Growing the p-GaN layer at lower temperatures with RPCVD instead of MOCVD should reduce the MQW degradation, hence resulting in a brighter LED, says the firm.

BluGlass’ chief technology officer Dr. Ian Mann said, “This system will give BluGlass control of the whole LED structure required for the company to demonstrate an LED performance lift with RPCVD grown p-GaN on MOCVD grown wafers. The key focus of having both MOCVD and RPCVD capability under one roof will be to demonstrate a successful integration of RPCVD and MOCVD to obtain better light output. In addition, it will assist in the performance comparison of the two technologies.”

BluGlass recently took delivery of a second MOCVD system, which will be installed and reconfigured as an RPCVD system. According to BluGlass, this second system will further accelerate the firm’s RPCVD development and will assist in demonstrating the scalability of RPCVD technology from its current 7x2 inch deposition capability to a 19x2 inch (or up to a single 8 inch) wafer deposition capability.

Figure 2: BluGlass increasing capacity. 

Giles Bourne, CEO of BluGlass, said, “Having multiple programmes in place simultaneously will significantly expedite our technology progress. Our primary goal remains now to demonstrate that low temperature RPCVD has the ability to produce brighter LEDs”. He continued “This new MOCVD resource will enable us to simplify this development process by giving the technology team full flexibility of MOCVD run cycles, but also by eliminating the lead-time required to obtain templates from overseas suppliers.”

The commissioning of these new tools will enable multiple programmes (including GaN on silicon) to proceed simultaneously at the Silverwater facility, says the firm. BluGlass will also target revenue generation by producing wafer templates as an early market entry point to boost acceptance of RPCVD technology by building credibility in the market place.

Tags: BluGlass MOCVD RPCVD GaN MQW

Visit: www.bluglass.com.au