Fabrication Technologies for III-V Compound Semiconductor Photonic and Electronic Devices.

Process technologies for the fabrication of III-V photonic and high speed electronic devices are described. The major processes involved are contact metallization, dielectric film deposition, wet and dry etching, diffusion, implantation, photolithography, wafer separation and die bonding. For the photonic devices, emphasis is on those operating at long-wavelength fabricated in the InP/InGaAsP material system. In contrast, for the high speed electronic devices, the fabrication of field effect transistors from the GaAs/AlGaAs system are discussed. Representative illustrative examples are presented in detail, and commonalities and contrasts in processing and in process criticality are indicated wherever possible. Specific constraints which determine the processing technique are reviewed, and examples are given throughout of the influence of processing on devices performance and reliability. The chapter closes with an assessment of the current trends in process development of relevance to III- V device fabrication.