Research into ultra-wide-bandgap (UWBG) semiconductors continues to expand year upon year, providing new and exciting research opportunities for a diverse range of electronic, optical, sensing and quantum applications. Materials with bandgaps exceeding that of gallium nitride (3.4 eV), such as gallium oxide, diamond, cubic-boron nitride and aluminum gallium nitride are at the forefront of this new frontier of semiconductor physics research. Many of the fundamental properties of these emerging materials are still little understood however - for example, the physics of high-energy carrier scattering processes responsible for electrical breakdown. Practical challenges such as efficient n-type and p-type doping, production of large area, low defect density substrates, the formation of robust, low resistance electrical contacts and the integration of dielectric films with high quality interfaces are also yet to be sufficiently addressed to facilitate the delivery of mature, viable and cost competitive UWBG technologies. While such materials therefore hold great promise for applications ranging from optoelectronic emitters and detectors, to more compact and efficient energy converters, to higher-power high-frequency amplifiers, to advances in quantum information science, many materials and processing issues must still be resolved before such UWBG semiconductors can reach maturity and have significant impact. This symposium will cover a broad range of topics related to the materials science, device physics and processing of ultra-wide-bandgap materials, with a perspective on the applications of the materials that are driving research in the field. Topics of current interest in the more traditional wide-bandgap materials area of research will also be considered. For example, the lack of an effective means to perform selective-area doping of gallium nitride has to date imposed severe limitations on the fabrication of vertical-architecture power switching devices, and the efficiency droop problem continues to hinder solid-state lighting despite its successful and widespread commercialization.

devices diamond dielectric dopant electronic material microelectronics nanostructure optoelectronic passivation semiconducting