AlGaN-based deep ultraviolet micro-LED emitting at 275 nm

Abstract

The investigation of electrical and optical properties of micro-scale AlGaN deep ultraviolet (DUV) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) emitting at ∼275<i>n</i><i>m</i> was carried out, with an emphasis on fabricated devices having a diameter of 300, 200, 100, 50, and 20 µm, respectively. It was revealed that the LED chips with smaller mesa areas deliver considerably higher light output power density; meanwhile, they can sustain a higher current density, which is mainly attributed to the enhanced current spreading uniformity in micro-scale chips. Importantly, when the diameter of LED chips decreases from 300 µm to 20 µm, the peak external quantum efficiency (EQE) increases by 20%, and the EQE peak current density can be boosted from 8.85<i>A</i>/<i>c</i><i>m</i>² and 99.52<i>A</i>/<i>c</i><i>m</i>². Moreover, we observed a longer wavelength emission with enlarged full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) in the LEDs with smaller chip sizes because of the self-heating effect at high current injection. These experimental observations provide insights into the design and fabrication of high-efficiency micro-LEDs emitting in the DUV regime with different device geometries for various future applications.