III-N optoelectronic devices: understanding the physics of electro-optical degradation

III-N optoelectronic devices are of great interest for many applications. Visible emitters (based on InGaN) are widely used in the lighting, display and automotive fields. Ultraviolet LEDs (based on AlGaN) are expected to be widely used for disinfection, medical treatments, surface curing and sensing. Photodetectors and solar cells based on InGaN are also of interest, thanks to their great robustness and wavelength tunability. III-N semiconductors are expected to be robust, thanks to the wide bandgap (allowing high temperature operation) and to the high breakdown field (favoring the robustness against electrostatic discharges and electrical overstress). However, InGaN- and AlGaN-based devices can show a significant degradation when submitted to long-term ageing. Several driving forces can contribute to the worsening of the electrical and optical characteristics, including the operating temperature, the current, and the rate of non-radiative recombination in the quantum wells. The goal of this paper is to discuss the physics of degradation of III-V devices, by presenting a set of recent case studies, evaluated in our laboratories.