Elimination of the kink effect in GaAs metal semiconductor field-effect transistors by utilizing a low-temperature-grown buffer layer

Abstract

GaAs metal semiconductor field-effect-transistors (MESFETs) utilizing a nondoped GaAs buffer layer grown by molecular beam epitaxy at 300 °C do not show the kink effect which is observed in GaAs MESFETs utilizing a nondoped GaAs buffer layer grown at 600 °C. However, in both types of FETs, almost the same photoemissions caused by drain avalanche multiplication, are observed between the gate and the drain. A deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) spectrum shows that the low-temperature buffer (LTB) layer contains a deep level similar to the EL-2 level with high density. The kink effect may be eliminated because the deep level works as a large recombination center for holes generated by drain avalanche multiplication.