{"id":76492,"date":"2025-12-15T16:00:42","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T14:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/?p=76492"},"modified":"2025-12-17T15:48:37","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T13:48:37","slug":"scaln-as-an-emerging-material-system-for-high-performance-gan-based-electronicsour-les-composants-electroniques-haute-performance-a-base-de-ganr-la-surveillance-de-maladies-au-coeur-dun-laboratoire-li","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/newsletter\/scaln-as-an-emerging-material-system-for-high-performance-gan-based-electronicsour-les-composants-electroniques-haute-performance-a-base-de-ganr-la-surveillance-de-maladies-au-coeur-dun-laboratoire-li.html","title":{"rendered":"ScAlN as an Emerging Material System for High-Performance GaN-Based Electronics"},"content":{"rendered":"<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-1ixp463-0db57d569d29b5f6f5464726e47e1956\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-1ixp463-0db57d569d29b5f6f5464726e47e1956 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:27px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-1ixp463-0db57d569d29b5f6f5464726e47e1956'   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><h3 style=\"text-align: center; font-size: 28px;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #33a1cc;\">ScAlN as an Emerging Material System for High-Performance GaN-Based Electronics<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-1ypqsfv-fbfce459a868e35771bf01d20764fac9\">\n.flex_column.av-1ypqsfv-fbfce459a868e35771bf01d20764fac9{\nwidth:46.75%;\nborder-width:1px;\nborder-color:#d3d3d3;\nborder-style:solid;\nborder-radius:10px 10px 10px 10px;\npadding:10px 10px 10px 10px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-1ypqsfv-fbfce459a868e35771bf01d20764fac9 av_one_half  avia-builder-el-1  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_one_half  first flex_column_div  column-top-margin'     ><style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-m7a7tnkm-6c5333b3f8b9645206088d708d3bb87f\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-m7a7tnkm-6c5333b3f8b9645206088d708d3bb87f .avia_textblock{\ntext-align:justify;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-m7a7tnkm-6c5333b3f8b9645206088d708d3bb87f'   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: justify; text-indent: 35.4pt;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/gan.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-76460\" src=\"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/gan.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"248\" height=\"202\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/gan.png 221w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/gan-15x12.png 15w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 248px) 100vw, 248px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Recent research at IEMN and its partner institutions underscores the emergence of scandium aluminium nitride (ScAlN) as a disruptive material system for next-generation III-nitride electron devices, especially high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs).<\/strong><br \/>\nWhile ScAlN has already gained industrial traction in acoustic-wave filters, its wide bandgap, strong polarization, and potential ferroelectricity are now driving a shift toward its use in high-frequency and high-power GaN-based heterostructures. The innovation lies in leveraging these intrinsic material advantages\u2014combined with advances in epitaxial growth\u2014to surpass the performance limitations of established AlGaN- and InAlN-based HEMT technologies.<\/p>\n<p>The principal motivation for integrating ScAlN into GaN heterostructures is its ability to induce exceptionally high two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) densities. When grown lattice-matched to GaN at high aluminium content, ScAlN enables carrier concentrations up to twice the value achievable with InAlN. This amplitude of polarization-driven charge density is critical for short-channel scaling, mitigating short-channel effects and enabling transistor operation deep into the millimeter-wave regime.<\/p>\n<p>A key technological innovation is the use of ammonia-source molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) to grow ScAlN\/GaN heterostructures with high crystal quality, precise stoichiometry control, and low contamination levels. Our partner CRHEA demonstrated that Sc incorporation remains stable across a broad 180\u00b0C temperature window, and that the resulting layers exhibit low strain and high crystalline integrity. These results highlight ammonia MBE as a strategically important alternative to plasma-assisted MBE and MOCVD, the latter limited by the absence of suitable scandium precursors.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-1d3ro9n-ce85e1836ae138bc14d119f521aa8a22\">\n.flex_column.av-1d3ro9n-ce85e1836ae138bc14d119f521aa8a22{\nwidth:46.75%;\nmargin-left:6.5%;\nborder-width:1px;\nborder-color:#b5b5b5;\nborder-style:solid;\nborder-radius:10px 10px 10px 10px;\npadding:10px 10px 10px 10px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-1d3ro9n-ce85e1836ae138bc14d119f521aa8a22 av_one_half  avia-builder-el-3  el_after_av_one_half  avia-builder-el-last  flex_column_div  column-top-margin'     ><p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-qg5ynv-1f32361667baf22b1d9526cce2926835\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-qg5ynv-1f32361667baf22b1d9526cce2926835 .avia_textblock{\ntext-align:justify;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-qg5ynv-1f32361667baf22b1d9526cce2926835'   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>Building on this growth capability, IEMN team reports the fabrication of the first high-frequency ScAlN\/GaN HEMTs produced by ammonia MBE. Initial devices exhibit 2DEG densities of 3\u20134 \u00d7 10\u00b9\u00b3 cm\u207b\u00b2 using ~10 nm ScAlN barriers, with electron mobilities between 500 and 1000 cm\u00b2 V\u207b\u00b9 s\u207b\u00b9. The introduction of ultrathin AlN or GaN capping layers represents another significant innovation, mitigating the inherent oxidation susceptibility of ScAlN without compromising electron transport. These capped heterostructures enable stable processing, leading to short-gate HEMTs (75 nm) on silicon with a maximum oscillation frequency exceeding 100 GHz, drain current density of 1.35 A mm\u207b\u00b9, and transconductance of 284 mS mm\u207b\u00b9\u2014performance metrics that position ScAlN\/GaN HEMTs as strong candidates for Ka-band applications. Power performance are evaluated at 10GHz for the first time on this material system\u00a0: a saturated power of 1W.mm<sup>-1<\/sup> is obtained, and further improvement is foreseen since material\/technological locks are identified.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_76461\" style=\"width: 394px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/gan2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-76461\" class=\"wp-image-76461\" src=\"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/gan2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"384\" height=\"163\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/gan2.png 400w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/gan2-300x128.png 300w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/gan2-18x8.png 18w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 384px) 100vw, 384px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-76461\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Frequency (Sij) and power performance of 75nm-gate ScAlN\/GaN HEMT<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Looking ahead, the research program anticipates broader integration of ScAlN into power-switching devices. Further innovation is expected through co-integration of piezoelectric, ferroelectric, and electronic functionalities enabled by ScAlN and quaternary ScAlGaN alloys. Collectively, the work delineates a rapidly expanding frontier in III-nitride materials research, driven by the unique electronic, structural, and multifunctional attributes of ScAlN and by development of dedicated technologies for its integration in future RF chips.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-mj70c29a-c5c25ee637ced71b43fda523f20fb54c\">\n#top .hr.av-mj70c29a-c5c25ee637ced71b43fda523f20fb54c{\nmargin-top:30px;\nmargin-bottom:30px;\n}\n.hr.av-mj70c29a-c5c25ee637ced71b43fda523f20fb54c .hr-inner{\nwidth:500px;\nborder-color:#bfbfbf;\nmax-width:45%;\n}\n.hr.av-mj70c29a-c5c25ee637ced71b43fda523f20fb54c .av-seperator-icon{\ncolor:#4594e8;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-mj70c29a-c5c25ee637ced71b43fda523f20fb54c hr-custom  avia-builder-el-5  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_textblock  hr-center hr-icon-yes'><span class='hr-inner inner-border-av-border-fat'><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><span class='av-seperator-icon' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue849' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><span class='hr-inner inner-border-av-border-fat'><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-12pc8wc-ea4b5fb3236bea5cdb9c0ea28f082cc7\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-12pc8wc-ea4b5fb3236bea5cdb9c0ea28f082cc7 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:14px;\ntext-align:justify;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-12pc8wc-ea4b5fb3236bea5cdb9c0ea28f082cc7'   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-76481\" src=\"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1-300x168.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"154\" height=\"86\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1-1030x577.png 1030w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1-768x430.png 768w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1-1536x860.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1-18x10.png 18w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1-1500x840.png 1500w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1-705x395.png 705w, https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Design-sans-titre1.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 154px) 100vw, 154px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>[1] El Whibi, S., \u00ab ScAlN\/GaN-on-Si (111) HEMTs for RF applications \u00bb, Applied Physics Express, vol. 18, n\u00b0 4, art. n\u00b0 046501, IOP, 2025.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/hal.science\/hal-05008937\/document\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">doi:10.35848\/1882-0786\/adc5db.<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div  class='avia-button-wrap av-l7shu4-4e9fed5363ad7a7060a9e06178cdc7db-wrap avia-button-center  avia-builder-el-7  avia-builder-el-no-sibling'><a href='mailto:nicolas.defrance@iemn.fr'  class='avia-button av-l7shu4-4e9fed5363ad7a7060a9e06178cdc7db av-link-btn avia-icon_select-yes-left-icon avia-size-light avia-position-center avia-color-blue'   aria-label=\"Nicolas Defrance\"><span class='avia_button_icon avia_button_icon_left' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue805' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><span class='avia_iconbox_title' >Nicolas Defrance<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div><\/section><\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[297],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-76492","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newsletter"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76492","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76492"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76492\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":76631,"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76492\/revisions\/76631"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76492"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76492"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iemn.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76492"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}