Analysis of Gallium Nitride Epilayers by Multi-ion Species Plasma-FIB and S/TEM Techniques

Analysis of a GaN device with state-of-the-art preparation using noble ions to minimize damage, enabling accurate epi-layer characterization in (S)TEM. A lamella containing the AlGaN/GaN stack was prepared with both xenon and argon plasma ions while subsequent analysis in (S)TEM enabled atomic-scale chemical mapping, lattice-resolved interface imaging, and strain and grain orientation analysis.