ELECTRICAL AND STRUCTURAL-PROPERTIES OF ALGAN - A COMPARISON WITH CVDDIAMOND

The present state of the AlGaN system is discussed in comparison to th e known properties of CVD diamond. Growth and structural features of t hin films as well as heterostructures are described. The variation of the fundamental optical gap with aluminum content provides the basis f or the application of AlGaN in optical devices for the ultraviolet spe ctral range. The large conduction band offset between GaN and AlN toge ther with reasonable dopability of AlGaN allow the construction of new field effect transistors with promising performance. The use of AlGaN in surface acoustic wave devices and the potentially negative electro n affinity of alloys with high Al content are also briefly mentioned. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science S.A.