Date of Graduation

12-2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Materials Engineering (MS)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Materials Science & Engineering

Advisor/Mentor

Chen, Zhong

Committee Member

Ware, Morgan E.

Second Committee Member

Hu, Jin

Third Committee Member

Leftwich, Matthew B.

Keywords

Silicon; Alternatives; Optimization

Abstract

Today’s world of electronics is dominated by semiconductor devices which utilize silicon as their substrate material. Though, silicon is not ideal for semiconductor devices in high-voltage or high-temperature applications. Additionally, the efficiency of silicon devices becomes drastically reduced in nonideal operating conditions. Therefore, finding alternatives to silicon?based devices has been a topic for decades now. A few great candidates to replace silicon devices for said applications include Silicon Carbide (SiC), Gallium Nitride (GaN), and Aluminum Arsenide (AlAs). SiC has grown its reputation as the best candidate, when compared to other potential alternatives, due to its wide bandgap, high operating frequency, and superior thermal conductivity. Without being able to utilize these benefits with the CMOS process on SiC, the potential efficiency of such devices will be wasted. Creating an efficient and resilient contact to both the n- and p-type regions for CMOS devices on SiC, or rather, a stable ohmic contact which uses the same fabrication process for both n- and p-type regions, has proven to be somewhat of a challenge. Hence, this work explores the basis for forming ohmic contacts on SiC as well as determining which applications are most suitable for each of the contact profiles included in the analysis. A review of contact formation and the structures fabricated for contact testing will precede a discussion on extraction methods of electrical characteristics and materials properties. Specifically, the connection between the electrical characteristics and materials formed in an ohmic contact will be used to analyze and judge the contacts which are foreseeably viable for a variety of applications. Finally, future works including optimization plans of the contact profiles discussed in this work and plans of developing more robust backend processing methods will be included.

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