International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation

Yet-Zen Liu

Shang-Yi Chiang

James E Goell

A small-area light-emitting diode of the surface-emitting type has a double heterojunction semiconductor structure grown on a substrate. A semiconductor blocking layer having a hole formed therein is disposed between the substrate and the layers of the double heterojunction semiconductor structure to confine the transverse current flow for greater efficiency. A metallic contact layer is formed on the surface of the double heterojunction semiconductor structure on the side opposite the substrate and has a registering hole formed therein having a size approximately equal to the size of the hole formed in the semiconductor blocking layer and disposed in registration therewith along an axis perpendicular to the layers. The cap layer of the double heterojunction semiconductor structure may include a hole etched therethrough and in registration with the previously mentioned holes for better light emission. In a further embodiment, the light-emitting layer is restricted in surface area to a region aligned with said holes for even greater light efficiency and current confinement.

Method of manufacturing a light-emitting diode by liquid phase epitaxy

Light emitting diode structure

A double heterostructure light emitting device has a graded index optical waveguide formed integrally therein. The integrally formed waveguide collects light from the heterojunction and directs the light in a distinct light pattern on one surface of the device. The rate of variation of the index gradient within the waveguide region determines the geometry of the light pattern. The light output pattern can be conveniently tailored to match the geometry of a wide variety of optical fiber dimensions.

Galium aluminum arsenide graded index waveguide

The resistivity of particular layers of a gallium arsenide-gallium aluminum arsenide light emitting diode is altered to provide current confinement in the central regions around the well hole. This is accomplished by proton bombardment to increase resistivity of layers around the lower metal contact area while leaving a low resistivity path over the contact, by diffusion of a low resistivity region into an added high resistivity layer adjacent the light emitting well hole, or by diffusion into a reverse conductivity barrier layer over the lower metal contact area.

Current confining light emitting diode

A method and structure are provided for the simplified batch fabrication of Gallium Arsenide-Aluminum Gallium Arsenide lightemitting diodes. A high aluminum content AlGaAs layer is formed on the GaAs substrate layer to provide an etch resistant mask, and an etchant is employed which preferentially etches the GaAs. This permits simultaneous etching of the substrate to form a plurality of like devices on a common semiconductor wafer in a repeatable low-cost batch process.

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Roanoke, VA, United States of America

Yet-Zen Liu