Surface-Plasmon-Coupled Blue InGaN/GaN Micro-LEDs with Oxide-Metal-Oxide Capping Layer Compatible to Chip Fabrication Process

초록

Blue InGaN/GaN micro-light-emitting diodes are promising for next-generation displays, but their efficiency severely diminishes at dimensions below similar to 5 & micro;m due to dominant sidewall-induced non-radiative recombination. To overcome this fundamental limitation, we propose a multifunctional oxide-metal-oxide (OMO) strategy to simultaneously passivate sidewall defects and introduce a highly efficient radiative recombination pathway via localized surface plasmon (LSP)-exciton coupling. This OMO configuration integrates conformal Al2O3 layers for effective surface passivation with thermally dewetted Ag nanoparticles, which serve as plasmonic centers. By precisely aligning the LSP resonance to the blue emission wavelength (similar to 450 nm), the OMO-integrated 4 & times; 4 & micro;m2 devices exhibit a 61% enhancement in micro-photoluminescence and a further 27% increase in external quantum efficiency compared with atomic-layer-deposited Al2O3 references. These results suggest that the plasmonic OMO sidewall architecture is a wafer-scale process-compatible and potentially scalable route toward high-performance, ultra-small micro-LED display pixels for future display applications.

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