On-Chip Thermal Insulation Using Porous GaN

Abstract

This study focuses on the thermal characterization of porous gallium nitride (GaN) usingan extended 3ω method. Porous semiconductor materials provide a solution to the need for on-chipthermal insulation, a fundamental requirement for low-power, high-speed and high-accuracythermal sensors. Thermal insulation is especially important in GaN devices, due to the intrinsicallyhigh thermal conductivity of the material. The results show one order of magnitude reduction inthermal conductivity, from 130 W/mK to 10 W/mK, in line with theoretical predictions for porousmaterials. This achievement is encouraging in the quest for integrating sensors with opto-, powerandRF-electronics on a single GaN chip.

Keywords

• GaN
• gallium nitride
• porous
• thermal conductivity
• thermal insulation
• 3-omega