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Title: Investigation of Nano‐Gaps in Fractured β‐Ga 2 O 3 Nanomembranes Formed by Uniaxial Strain
Abstract

A free‐standing β‐Ga2O3, also called β‐Ga2O3nanomembrane (NM), is an important next‐generation wide bandgap semiconductor that can be used for myriad high‐performance future flexible electronics. However, details of structure‐property relationships of β‐Ga2O3NM under strain conditions have not yet investigated. In this paper, the electrical properties of β‐Ga2O3NM under different uniaxial strain conditions using various surface analysis methods are systematically investigated and layer‐delamination and fractures are revealed. The electrical characterization shows that the presence of nanometer‐sized gaps between fractured pieces in β‐Ga2O3NM causes a severe property degradation due to higher resistance and uneven charge distribution in β‐Ga2O3NM which is also confirmed by the multiphysics simulation. Interestingly, the degraded performance in β‐Ga2O3NM is substantially recovered by introducing excessive OH‐bonds in fractured β‐Ga2O3NM via the water vapor treatment. The X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy study reveals that a formation of OH‐bonds by the water vapor treatment chemically connects nano‐gaps. Thus, the treated β‐Ga2O3samples exhibit reliable and stable recovered electrical properties up to ≈90% of their initial values. Therefore, this result offers a viable route for utilizing β‐Ga2O3NMs as a next‐generation material for a myriad of high‐performance flexible electronics and optoelectronic applications.

 
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Award ID(s):
1809077
NSF-PAR ID:
10453180
Author(s) / Creator(s):
 ;  ;  ;  ;  ;  ;  
Publisher / Repository:
Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Advanced Electronic Materials
Volume:
7
Issue:
2
ISSN:
2199-160X
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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