Potential design strategy of wide-bandgap semiconductor p-type β-Ga2O3

Abstract

Abstract Wide bandgap semiconductor gallium oxide (β-Ga2O3) has emerged as a prominent material in the field of high-power microelectronics and optoelectronics, due to its excellent and stable performance. However, the lack of high-quality p-type β-Ga2O3 hinders the realization of its full potential. Here, we initially summarize the origins of p-type doping limitation in β-Ga2O3, followed by proposing four potential design strategies to enhance the p-type conductivity of β-Ga2O3. (i) Lowering the formation energy of acceptors to enhance its effective doping concentration. (ii) Reducing the ionization energy of acceptors to increase the concentration of free holes in the valence band maximum (VBM). (iii) Increasing the VBM of β-Ga2O3 to decrease the ionization energy of acceptors. (iv) Intrinsic defect engineering and nanotechnology of β-Ga2O3. For each strategy, we illustrate the design principles based on fundamental physical theories along with specific examples. From this review, one could learn the p-type doping strategies for β-Ga2O3.