Defect detection and modelling using pulsed electrical stress for reliability investigations on InGaP HBT

GaAs HBT (heterojunction bipolar transistor) technology has reached a certain degree of maturity in the last decade, although reliability problems are not completely solved. In consequence, a material system based on InGaP/GaAs is used, resulting in improved device reliability after the base-emitter interface and the metal contacts have been optimised. The increasing demand for security relevant applications and for the mass market requires not only highly reliable devices and their lifetime data, but also an increased physical understanding of degradation mechanisms and short times for reliability evaluation. In this paper, two approaches are presented for the excitement of the "hydrogen-effect", which has been reported in connection with InGaP HBTs.