Publications
Molten salt-based growth of bulk GaN and InN for substrates
An atmospheric pressure approach to growth of bulk group III-nitrides is outlined. Native III-nitride substrates for optoelectronic and high power, high frequency electronics are desirable to enhance performance and reliability of these devices; currently, these materials are available in research quantities only for GaN, and are unavailable in the case of InN. The thermodynamics and kinetics of the reactions associated with traditional crystal growth techniques place these activities on the extreme edges of experimental physics. The novel techniques described herein rely on the production of the nitride precursor (N{sup 3-}) by chemical and/or electrochemical methods in a molten halide salt. This nitride ion is then reacted with group III metals in such a manner as to form the bulk nitride material. The work performed during the period of funding (February 2006-September 2006) focused on establishing that mass transport of GaN occurs in molten LiCl, the construction of a larger diameter electrochemical cell, the design, modification, and installation of a made-to-order glove box (required for handling very hygroscopic LiCl), and the feasibility of using room temperature molten salts to perform nitride chemistry experiments.