Heat dissipation in high-power GaN electronics on thermally resistive substrates

The heat dissipation in GaN devices grown on low thermal conductivity lithium gallate (LGO) substrates was investigated. The thermal conductivity of single-crystal LGO was measured utilizing the 3ω technique for temperatures ranging from 100 K-500 K. For the GaN layer, the thermal conductivity was estimated using a phonon transport model which included dislocation density and temperature dependence. These data were then used in a finite element program to determine the thermal behavior of a heterojunction field-effect transistor. Based on a maximum junction temperature of 500 K, it was found that devices with a power dissipation of 1 W/mm were possible if the primary heat dissipation path was through the low thermal conductivity substrate. However, in using a front side cooling scheme, results suggest that it may be possible to develop devices with power dissipation in the range of 10 W/mm.