A method of removing a substrate from III-nitride based semiconductor layers with a cleaving technique. A growth restrict mask is formed on or above a substrate, and one or more III-nitride based semiconductor layers are grown on or above the substrate using the growth restrict mask. The III-nitride based semiconductor layers are bonded to a support substrate or film, and the III-nitride based semiconductor layers are removed from the substrate using a cleaving technique on a surface of the substrate. Stress may be applied to the III-nitride based semiconductor layers, due to differences in thermal expansion between the III-nitride substrate and the support substrate or film bonded to the III-nitride based semiconductor layers, before the III-nitride based semiconductor layers are removed from the substrate. Once removed, the substrate can be recycled, resulting in cost savings for device fabrication.

A method of fabricating and transferring high quality and manufacturable light-emitting devices, such as micro-sized light-emitting diodes (μLEDs), edge-emitting lasers and vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs), using epitaxial later over-growth (ELO) and isolation methods. III-nitride semiconductor layers are grown on a host substrate using a growth restrict mask, and the III-nitride semiconductor layers on wings of the ELO are then made into the light-emitting devices. The devices are isolated from the host substrate to a thickness equivalent to the growth restrict mask and then transferred or lifted from of the host substrate. Back-end processing of the devices is then performed, such as attaching distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) mirrors, forming cladding layers, and/or adding heatsinks.

The present disclosure provides a method and structure for producing large area gallium and nitrogen engineered substrate members configured for the epitaxial growth of layer structures suitable for the fabrication of high performance semiconductor devices. In a specific embodiment the engineered substrates are used to manufacture gallium and nitrogen containing devices based on an epitaxial transfer process wherein as-grown epitaxial layers are transferred from the engineered substrate to a carrier wafer for processing. In a preferred embodiment, the gallium and nitrogen containing devices are laser diode devices operating in the 390 nm to 425 nm range, the 425 nm to 485 nm range, the 485 nm to 550 nm range, or greater than 550 nm.

Included are: an underlying substrate including a first surface; a semiconductor element layer dividable into a plurality of element portions, the semiconductor element layer being located on the first surface of the underlying substrate; and a support substrate including a second surface on which the semiconductor element layer is located, the second surface facing the first surface, the semiconductor element layer being located on the second surface. The support substrate and the semiconductor element layer include a weak portion used to divide the semiconductor element layer into the plurality of element portions.

There is provided a semiconductor element containing gallium nitride. The semiconductor element includes a semiconductor layer including a first surface having a first region and a second region that is a projecting portion having a strip shape and projecting relative to the first region or a recessed portion having a strip shape and being recessed relative to the first region. Of the first surface, at least one of surfaces of the first region and the second region includes a crystal plane having a plane orientation different from a (000-1) plane orientation and a (1-100) plane orientation.

A method of making a Group III nitride material that includes: providing a substrate; patterning a template on the substrate; depositing a layer of a material comprising aluminum, gallium and nitrogen on the substrate at a temperature; annealing the layer comprising aluminum, gallium and nitrogen; epitaxially growing Distributed Bragg Reflectors to form a structure on the substrate that comprises microcavities; and etching micropillars in the structure for at least 30 seconds with a heated basic solution is described.

A method of removing a substrate from III-nitride based semiconductor layers with a cleaving technique. A growth restrict mask is formed on or above a substrate, and one or more III-nitride based semiconductor layers are grown on or above the substrate using the growth restrict mask. The III-nitride based semiconductor layers are bonded to a support substrate or film, and the III-nitride based semiconductor layers are removed from the substrate using a cleaving technique on a surface of the substrate. Stress may be applied to the III-nitride based semiconductor layers, due to differences in thermal expansion between the III-nitride substrate and the support substrate or film bonded to the III-nitride based semiconductor layers, before the III-nitride based semiconductor layers are removed from the substrate. Once removed, the substrate can be recycled, resulting in cost savings for device fabrication.

A nitride semiconductor structure includes a Group III nitride semiconductor portion and a Group II-IV nitride semiconductor portion. The Group III nitride semiconductor portion is single crystalline. The Group III nitride semiconductor portion has a predetermined crystallographic plane. The Group II-IV nitride semiconductor portion is provided on the predetermined crystallographic plane of the Group III nitride semiconductor portion. The Group II-IV nitride semiconductor portion is single crystalline. The Group II-IV nitride semiconductor portion contains a Group II element and a Group IV element. The Group II-IV nitride semiconductor portion forms a heterojunction with the Group III nitride semiconductor portion. The predetermined crystallographic plane is a crystallographic plane other than a (0001) plane.

A method of removing a substrate, comprising: forming a growth restrict mask with a plurality of striped opening areas directly or indirectly upon a GaN-based substrate; and growing a plurality of semiconductor layers upon the GaN-based substrate using the growth restrict mask, such that the growth extends in a direction parallel to the striped opening areas of the growth restrict mask, and growth is stopped before the semiconductor layers coalesce, thereby resulting in island-like semiconductor layers. A device is processed for each of the island-like semiconductor layers. Etching is performed until at least a part of the growth restrict mask is exposed. The devices are then bonded to a support substrate. The GaN-based substrate is removed from the devices by a wet etching technique that at least partially dissolves the growth restrict mask. The GaN substrate that is removed then can be recycled.

A light emitting element according to the present disclosure includes a first light reflecting layer 41, a laminated structure 20, and a second light reflecting layer 42 laminated to each other. The laminated structure 20 includes a first compound semiconductor layer 21, a light emitting layer 23, and a second compound semiconductor layer 22 laminated to each other from a side of the first light reflecting layer. Light from the laminated structure 20 is emitted to an outside via the first light reflecting layer 41 or the second light reflecting layer 42. The first light reflecting layer 41 has a structure in which at least two types of thin films 41A and 41B are alternately laminated to each other in plural numbers. A film thickness modulating layer 80 is provided between the laminated structure 20 and the first light reflecting layer 41.