A C-Band AlGaN/GaN HEMT with Cat-CVD SiN Passivation Developed for an Over 100 W Operation

We applied a Cat-CVD (catalytic chemical vapor deposition) passivation film to AlGaN/GaN HEMTs, to resolve the trade-off between their drain current transient time and gate-drain break down voltage. We did not employ any field plate because it degrades high frequency operation over C-band. The SiN passivation film, deposited after a NH3 treatment, resulted in less transient time and less gate leakage current than conventional PE-CVD passivation. A T-shaped gate HEMT fabricated by this technique, with Lg = 0.4 µm and Wg = 50.4 mm, delivered an output power over 140 W (2.79 W/mm), which was a record power at C-band.