Semiconductor LED With Nano-Scale Active Elements
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing semiconductor light emitting diodes (LEDs) face efficiency issues due to lattice mismatch, leading to strain and defects when the indium concentration increases, resulting in reduced emission efficiency, especially for red light emission.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a semiconductor LED structure with nano-scale active elements spaced apart on a first semiconductor layer, each with a width between 10 nm and 100 nm, and a second semiconductor layer, maintaining a strain state to minimize defects and enhance emission efficiency, even at high indium concentrations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If the indium concentration is increased to achieve red light emission, then the emission wavelength is improved, but the lattice mismatch increases causing strain and defects that reduce emission efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The active layer is segmented into multiple quantum well layers with different indium compositions. Each quantum well layer has a specific indium concentration optimized for its position in the structure, allowing the overall device to achieve red light emission while individual layers maintain lower strain levels. This segmentation enables the system to overcome the lattice mismatch problem by distributing the strain across multiple layers rather than concentrating it in a single high-indium layer.
2Illumination intensity
If the active layer width is increased to improve light output, then the emission intensity is improved, but the strain accumulation increases leading to more defects
Solution Approach 1:
Different regions of the active layer are assigned different indium compositions and thicknesses. The quantum well layers have localized regions of high indium concentration for red light emission, while the barrier layers have lower indium content to reduce strain. This local quality variation allows the active layer to maintain overall functionality while minimizing strain accumulation in critical regions.
3Device complexity
If a single-layer active layer is used to simplify the structure, then the device complexity is reduced, but the emission efficiency decreases due to high strain and defects
Solution Approach 1:
The active layer is constructed as a composite structure combining multiple quantum well layers with different indium compositions and barrier layers. This composite approach allows each layer to be optimized for its specific function - some layers for light emission, others for strain management - thereby achieving high emission efficiency despite the increased structural complexity compared to a single-layer design.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach maintains a stable strain state, reducing defects and achieving high light emission efficiency, particularly for red light emission, by controlling the width and pitch of the active elements, thereby overcoming the limitations of lattice mismatch.
Implementation Method 1
a plurality of active elements disposed on the first semiconductor layer, each of the plurality of active elements spaced apart from each other and having a width less than a width of the first semiconductor layer
Data Source
AI summary
A semiconductor light emitting diode (LED) and a method of manufacturing the same are provided. The LED includes a first semiconductor layer; a plurality of active elements spaced apart on the first semiconductor layer and each having a width less than a width of the first semiconductor layer; and a second semiconductor layer disposed on the plurality of active elements.