Synthesis of GaN Crystal Using Gallium Hydride

A new method for synthesizing a large area of c -axis GaN film was developed. The gallium hydride which was formed by the reaction between metal-Ga and hydrogen gas was used as the Ga source, and reacted with NH 3 gas to grow GaN crystals on the sapphire (0001) substrate. 2.7 µm-thick GaN film with c -axis orientation could be grown on the substrate. Stable conditions for the synthesis of gallium hydride by the reaction of H 2 gas with metal-Ga were examined. As a result, gallium hydride is stable at about 1000°C which is a temperature commonly used for the growth of GaN. These results show that the use of gallium hydride as the predominant species of the Ga source can provide a relatively inexpensive method of growing GaN crystals at a high level of purity.