High Temperature Hardness of Bulk Single Crystal GaN

Abstract

AbstractThe hardness of single crystal GaN (gallium nitride) at elevated temperature is measured for the first time and compared with other materials. A Vickers indentation method was used to determine the hardness of crack-free GaN samples under an applied load of 0.5N in the temperature range 20 - 1200°C. The hardness is 10.8 GPa at room temperature, which is comparable to that of Si. At elevated temperatures GaN shows higher hardness than Si and GaAs. A high mechanical stability for GaN at high temperature is deduced.