The present disclosure relates to semiconductor structures and, more particularly, to gate structures and methods of manufacture. The structure includes: a gate structure comprising a horizontal portion and a substantially vertical stem portion; and an air gap surrounding the substantially vertical stem portion and having a curved surface under the horizontal portion.

A circuit includes a field effect transistor (FET), a reference transistor having an output coupled to an output of the FET, an active bias circuit coupled to the reference transistor and configured to generate an input signal for the reference transistor in response to a change in drain current of the reference transistor due to carrier trapping and to apply the input signal to an input of the reference transistor, and a summing node coupled to an input of the FET and to the input of the reference transistor. The summing node adds the input signal to an input signal of the FET to compensate the carrier trapping effect.

A method including forming a III-V compound layer on a substrate and implanting a main dopant in the III-V compound layer to form source and drain regions. The method further includes implanting a group V species into the source and drain regions. A semiconductor device including a substrate and a III-V compound layer over the substrate. The semiconductor device further includes source and drain regions in the III-V layer, wherein the source and drain regions comprises a first dopants and a second dopant, and the second dopant comprises a group V material.

A high efficiency satellite transmitter comprises an RF amplifier chip in thermal contact with a radiant cooling element via a heat conducting element. The RF amplifier chip comprises an active layer disposed on a high thermal conductivity substrate having a thermal conductivity greater than about 1000 W/mK, maximizing heat conduction out of the RF amplifier chip and ultimately into outer space when the chip is operating within a satellite under normal transmission conditions. In one embodiment, the active layer comprises materials selected from the group consisting of GaN, InGaN, AlGaN, and InGaAlN alloys. In one embodiment, the high thermal conductivity substrate comprises synthetic diamond.

A high efficiency satellite transmitter comprises an RF amplifier chip in thermal contact with a radiant cooling element via a heat conducting element. The RF amplifier chip comprises an active layer disposed on a high thermal conductivity substrate having a thermal conductivity greater than about 1000 W/mK, maximizing heat conduction out of the RF amplifier chip and ultimately into outer space when the chip is operating within a satellite under normal transmission conditions. In one embodiment, the active layer comprises materials selected from the group consisting of GaN, InGaN, AlGaN, and InGaAlN alloys. In one embodiment, the high thermal conductivity substrate comprises synthetic diamond.

Structures for a bidirectional switch and methods of forming such structures. A substrate contact is formed in a trench defined in a substrate. A substrate includes a trench and a substrate contact in the trench. A bidirectional switch, which is on the substrate, includes a first source/drain electrode, a second source/drain electrode, an extension region between the first source/drain electrode and the second source/drain electrode, and a gate structure. A substrate-bias switch, which is on the substrate, includes a gate structure, a first source/drain electrode coupled to the substrate contact, a second source/drain electrode coupled to the first source/drain electrode of the bidirectional switch, and an extension region laterally between the gate structure and the first source/drain electrode.

A method is provided for forming Group IIIA-nitride layers, such as GaN, on substrates. The Group IIIA-nitride layers may be deposited on mesa-patterned semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI, e.g., silicon-on-insulator) substrates. The Group IIIA-nitride layers may be deposited by heteroepitaxial deposition on mesa-patterned semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI, e.g., silicon-on-insulator) substrates.

A layer structure for a normally-off transistor has an electron-supply layer made of a group-III-nitride material, a back-barrier layer made of a group-III-nitride material, a channel layer between the electron-supply layer and the back-barrier layer, made of a group-III-nitride material having a band-gap energy that is lower than the band-gap energies of the other layer mentioned. The material of the back-barrier layer is of p-type conductivity, while the material of the electron-supply layer and the material of the channel layer are not of p-type conductivity, the band-gap energy of the electron-supply layer is smaller than the band-gap energy of the back-barrier layer. In absence of an external voltage a lower conduction-band-edge of the third group-III-nitride material in the channel layer is higher in energy than a Fermi level of the material in the channel layer.

A layer structure for a normally-off transistor has an electron-supply layer made of a group-III-nitride material, a back-barrier layer made of a group-III-nitride material, a channel layer between the electron-supply layer and the back-barrier layer, made of a group-III-nitride material having a band-gap energy that is lower than the band-gap energies of the other layer mentioned. The material of the back-barrier layer is of p-type conductivity, while the material of the electron-supply layer and the material of the channel layer are not of p-type conductivity, the band-gap energy of the electron-supply layer is smaller than the band-gap energy of the back-barrier layer. In absence of an external voltage a lower conduction-band-edge of the third group-III-nitride material in the channel layer is higher in energy than a Fermi level of the material in the channel layer.

A semiconductor structure (100) comprising: a substrate (102), a first layer (106) of Al.sub.XGa.sub.YIn.sub.(1−X−Y)N disposed on the substrate, stacks (107, 109) of several second and third layers (108, 110) alternating against each other, between the substrate and the first layer, a fourth layer (112) of Al.sub.XGa.sub.YIn.sub.(1−X−Y)N, between the stacks, a relaxation layer of AlN disposed between the fourth layer and one of the stacks, and, in each of the stacks: the level of Ga of the second layers increases from one layer to the next in a direction from the substrate to the first layer, the level of Ga of the third layers is constant or decreasing from one layer to the next in said direction, the average mesh parameter of each group of adjacent second and third layers increasing from one group to the next in said direction, the thickness of the second and third layers is less than 5 nm.