Field-effect transistors based on cubic indium nitride

Although the demand for high-speed telecommunications has increased in recent years, the performance of transistors fabricated with traditional semiconductors such as silicon, gallium arsenide, and gallium nitride have reached their physical performance limits. Therefore, new materials with high carrier velocities should be sought for the fabrication of next-generation, ultra-high-speed transistors. Indium nitride (InN) has attracted much attention for this purpose because of its high electron drift velocity under a high electric field. Thick InN films have been applied to the fabrication of field-effect transistors (FETs), but the performance of the thick InN transistors was discouraging, with no clear linear-saturation output characteristics and poor on/off current ratios. Here, we report the epitaxial deposition of ultrathin cubic InN on insulating oxide yttria-stabilized zirconia substrates and the first demonstration of ultrathin-InN-based FETs. The devices exhibit high on/off ratios and low off-current densities because of the high quality top and bottom interfaces between the ultrathin cubic InN and oxide insulators. This first demonstration of FETs using a ultrathin cubic indium nitride semiconductor will thus pave the way for the development of next-generation high-speed electronics.