Japan’s Air Water to Develop GaN-on-SiC-on-Si with AIXTRON System

Aachen/Germany, August 29, 2013 – AIXTRON SE today announced that Air Water Inc. of Azumino/Japan is reporting the successful installation of a fully automated AIX G5 HT Planetary Reactorin a 8x6-inch configuration for the growth of GaN epitaxial layers. 

Air Water selected the AIXTRON MOCVD system based on its ability to deliver superior material uniformity, a key factor in demonstrating the advantage of Air Water substrates for GaN epitaxy.　Following system installation, the company has announced the release of GaN-on-SiC on silicon substrates for this year, fully exploiting the system’s excellent productivity. In order to address future market demand, Air Water is also considering upgrading the system to an AIXTRON AIX G5+, which can handle up to 5x200 mm (8-inch) silicon substrates. 

As compared to traditional silicon substrates, the additional SiC layer displays the advantage of protecting the Si substrate in the initial GaN nucleation process. Due to its crystal structure SiC is considered as an ideal template for the GaN growth. Therefore, the SiC-on-Si substrate is enabling the growth of superior crystal quality GaN layers onto large areas. This characteristic brings efficiency and cost savings to a wide range of high-power and LED applications.

Air Water is a Japanese leading industrial gas manufacturer and has developed silicon carbide growth on silicon for both power device and LED applications as part of the semiconductor gas business. In this regard, the company has already succeeded in the production of high quality 3C-SiC (111) on up to 8-inch silicon substrates and has also announced the release of these products for GaN epitaxial growth required to manufacture electronic devices for LED and power electronic applications.

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