NSF East Asia and Pacific Summer Institute for FY 2012 in Japan

Krueger Benjamin W, Seattle WA

Investigators

Abstract

This action funds Benjamin William Krueger of the University of Washington to conduct a research project, entitled "Controlling conduction at the interface of transparent thin films," during the summer of 2012 at the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) in Tsukuba, Japan. The host scientist is Dr. Toyohiro Chikyow, principal investigator of the Nano-Electronics Materials Unit at NIMS. The Intellectual Merit of this research project is twofold: first, to understand the role of aluminum and indium dopants on the electrical, structural and optical properties of gallium oxide, a transparent semiconductor that exhibits marked n-type conductivity, in order to create custom-tailored semiconducting thin films with tunable band gap energy and conductivity; and second, to study conduction and electron accumulation at the interface between two dissimilar gallium oxide films as the doping level is varied. This research promises to enable the successful design of transparent high-electron mobility transistors (HEMT), to complement the commercially successful aluminum gallium arsenide HEMTs ubiquitous in modern high-frequency devices. Broader Impacts of an EAPSI fellowship include providing the Fellow a first-hand research experience outside the U.S.; an introduction to the science, science policy, and scientific infrastructure of Japan; and an orientation to the society, culture and language. These activities meet the NSF goal to educate for international collaborations early in the career of its scientists, engineers, and educators, thus ensuring a globally aware U.S. scientific workforce.