Effect of Annealing on the Characteristics of Ti/Al Ohmic Contacts to p-Type 4H-SiC

Abstract

Ti/Al contacts deposited on p-type epilayer doped with Al at 2×1019 cm-3 are reported. The current-voltage curves of Ti/Al contacts annealed at different temperatures from 800 to 1000 °C were measured, which provided the specific contact resistances (SCRs) of 6.59×10-5 Ω/cm2 and 7.81×10-5Ω/cm2 after annealing at 900°C for 5min and 950°C for 2min, respectively. The microstructures of Ti/Al contact on P-type 4H–SiC were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results of XRD show that the phases of Ti3SiC2 was formed at the metal/SiC interface after annealing, which could be effective to ohmic contacts on P-type 4H-SiC. The quantitative phase analysis were also discussed, which show that the phase composition of Ti3SiC2is key factor for low resistance to P-type 4H–SiC. Moreover, simulations proved that the gradual Ti3SiC2ISL reduces or eliminates the effective barrier height at the metal/Ti3SiC2/p-type and may also contribute to low contact resistivity.