Breakthroughs in Improving Crystal Quality of GaN and Invention of the p--n Junction Blue-Light-Emitting Diode

Marked improvements in the crystalline quality of GaN enabled the production of GaN-based p−n junction blue-light-emitting and violet-laser diodes. These robust, energetically efficient devices have opened up a new frontier in optoelectronics. A new arena of wide-bandgap semiconductors has been developed due to marked improvements in the crystalline quality of nitrides. In this article, we review breakthroughs in the crystal growth and conductivity control of nitride semiconductors during the development of p−n junction blue-light-emitting devices. Recent progress mainly based on the present authors’ work and future prospects of nitride semiconductors are also discussed.