Barrier height enhancement of Ni/N-type InP Schottky contact using a thin praseodymium interlayer

A praseodymium interlayer with a thickness of 100 ii at Ni/InP Schottky con tacts is shown to enhance the barrier height and reduce the reverse-bias cu rrent density. It is demonstrated that even though the contact was baked fo r 8 h at a temperature of 300 degrees C, its barrier height and reverse-bia s current density could still be maintained at about 1.05 eV and 1.86 x 10( -10) A/cm(2) at -3 V. respectively. It is believed that praseodymium has hi gh reactivity with oxygen to fonn praseodymium oxide with a wide band gap a nd a strong chemical bond. Similar to metal-insulator-semiconductar diodes, praseodymium can effectively increase the Schottky barrier hc height and r educe the reverse leakage current.