Philippine E-Journals

Photoluminescence of Gallium Nitride Nanomaterials Synthesized by the Horizontal Vapor Phase Growth Technique for Light Emitting Diode Applications

Eric Thomas De Guzman | Gil Nonato C. Santos

 

Abstract:

Gallium Nitride is a semiconductor material that has been reviewed as an ideal material for electronic devices. This is because Gallium Nitride is a material that has a direct energy gap of 3.4 eV which allows it to function well in high power devices. This study showed that Gallium Nitride is a suitable material in the production of light emitting diodes. The nanomaterials were grown using the Horizontal Vapor Phase growth method and was subject to analysis under the scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive x-ray. Results of the Scanning Electron Microscopy indicated that the nanostructures were nanohexagons and malformed nanohexagons since the process does not involve a catalyst and substrate that made the products grew in random direction. Energy Dispersive X-Ray analysis showed that indeed the nanomaterial was GaN although there were impurities such as Carbon, Oxygen, and Nitrogen. The photoluminescence of the GaN nanomaterial was tested under a spectral microscope to determine the energy gap and spectra the nanomaterial would emit when excited. The energy gap was calculated to be 1.8 eV, 2.31 eV, and 3.1 eV where indicative of green, red, and blue spectra of the GaN nanomaterial, respectively. Thus, with the results of the PL, of the GaN nanomaterial, with appropriate electronic design, the GaN nanomaterial is suitable for LED applications.