Group-III Nitrides Hot Electron Effects in Moderate Electric Fields

Abstract

We studied the distribution function and basic characteristics of hot electrons in InN, GaN and AlN under moderate electric fields, and found that in relatively low fields (of the order of kV/cm) the optical phonon emission dominates the electron kinetics. This strongly inelastic process gives rise to a spindle-shaped distribution function and an extended portion of quasi-saturation of the current–voltage characteristics (the streaming-like regime). We prove that this hot electron regime holds for all three nitrides. We suggest that the effects can be detected by the measurement of the I–V characteristics, or the thermopower of hot electrons in the transverse direction.