GaN
Gallium nitride · GaN
Gallium nitride is a stable, high-performance semiconductor widely utilized in the manufacturing of efficient light-emitting diodes and power electronics.
About Gallium nitride
Gallium nitride is a prominent III-V semiconductor that has become a cornerstone of modern solid-state technology. Its inherent thermodynamic stability and favorable electronic properties make it a highly reliable material for demanding high-frequency and high-power applications. The material is exceptionally well-characterized, with a vast array of reported structural configurations across scientific databases. This structural diversity underscores its versatility and importance in the development of advanced electronic and photonic devices.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Gallium nitride, aggregated across 6 databases.
Band GapEnergy needed to move an electron from the valence band to the conduction band. Lower or zero values tend to behave more metallic; larger gaps are more insulating or semiconducting.
Energy Above HullThermodynamic distance from the most stable set of competing phases. 0 eV/atom is on the convex hull; small positive values may still be experimentally accessible.
StabilityA plain-language summary of the best reported energy-above-hull result. It reflects whether the lowest-energy structure is on, near, or far from the stability hull.
StructuresCount of reported calculated crystal structures for this formula, including alternate polymorphs, source databases, and observed space groups.
Cross-Source DFT Agreement
How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of GaN. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.
Agreement ScoreA normalized confidence score summarizing how closely independent DFT databases agree. Higher scores mean tighter cross-source agreement.
Hull SpreadDifference between the highest and lowest energy-above-hull values reported by comparable sources. Smaller spread means less thermodynamic disagreement.
Sources ComparedNumber and names of computational sources with comparable entries for this formula.
Space Group ConsensusWhether independent sources predict the same crystal symmetry for the lowest-energy structure.
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for GaN, ranked by energy above hull.
| Space GroupSymmetry classification of the crystal arrangement. The number is the international space-group index. | Crystal SystemBroad lattice family, such as cubic, tetragonal, monoclinic, or triclinic, derived from unit-cell symmetry. | Band Gap (eV)Electronic gap calculated for this specific reported structure, measured in electronvolts. | E above hull (eV/atom)Thermodynamic distance from the convex hull for this structure, normalized per atom. Lower is generally more stable. | E/atom (eV)Computed total energy normalized per atom. Use energy above hull, not this value alone, when comparing stability. | Density (g/cm³)Mass per relaxed crystal volume, reported in grams per cubic centimeter. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P63mc (No. 186) | hexagonal | 1.94 | 0.0000 | -0.571 | — |
| P63mc (No. 186) | hexagonal | 1.74 | 0.0000 | -10.956 | 6.08 |
| — | — | 2.08 | 0.0004 | -0.579 | — |
| — | — | 1.99 | 0.0010 | -0.579 | — |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 1.79 | 0.0033 | -0.568 | — |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 1.79 | 0.0033 | -0.568 | — |
| — | — | 2.03 | 0.0052 | -0.574 | — |
| — | — | 2.03 | 0.0067 | -0.573 | — |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 1.57 | 0.0067 | -10.949 | 6.07 |
| — | — | 1.76 | 0.2395 | -0.340 | — |
| P63mc (No. 186) | hexagonal | 0.83 | 0.2885 | -10.667 | 6.01 |
| P63/mmc (No. 194) | hexagonal | 1.37 | 0.3536 | -10.602 | 3.69 |
Synthesis Routes
Literature-extracted synthesis procedures targeting GaN.
Applications
Where Gallium nitride is used.
Patent Landscape
33 patents reference GaN or close compositional variants.
| Patent | Title | Assignee | Granted |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10177217 | C-plane GaN substrate | — | — |
| 10186630 | Seed wafer for GaN thickening using gas- or liquid-phase epitaxy | — | — |
| 9595632 | Method for producing GaN-based crystal and semiconductor device | — | — |
| 6719842 | Ammonia for use in manufacture of GaN-type compound semiconductor and method for manufacturing GaN-type compou | — | — |
| 8524581 | GaN epitaxy with migration enhancement and surface energy modification | — | — |
| 12065755 | Method for growing a GaN single crystal film on a buffer layer on a ScAlMgO4 substrate and performing cooling | — | — |
| 11987903 | N-type GaN crystal, GaN wafer, and GaN crystal, GaN wafer and nitride semiconductor device production method | — | — |
| 11371140 | Method for producing GaN crystal | — | — |
| 12060652 | Linear showerhead for growing GaN | — | — |
| 10546972 | Buried activated p-(Al,In)GaN layers | — | — |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Gallium nitride, answered from cross-validated data.
What is GaN?
Gallium nitride is a stable, high-performance semiconductor widely utilized in the manufacturing of efficient light-emitting diodes and power electronics.
What is GaN used for?
What is the band gap of GaN?
Is GaN a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is GaN thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of GaN?
How many polymorphs of GaN are known?
How is GaN synthesized?
What elements does GaN contain?
Where does the data for GaN come from?
Related Research
A band gap sets whether a solid is a metal, semiconductor or insulator. Learn direct vs indirect gaps, how gaps are measured, and why DFT underestimates them.
Silicon carbide vs gallium nitride: how these wide bandgap semiconductors compare on band gap, breakdown field, heat, cost, and where each wins in power and RF.
How It Compares
Within the iii-v semiconductors class.
Within the family of III-V semiconductors, gallium nitride stands out for its superior performance in optoelectronics compared to siblings like gallium phosphide. While materials such as aluminum nitride and indium nitride share the same structural classification, gallium nitride is often considered the most technologically mature member, offering a balanced combination of electronic characteristics that facilitate its widespread integration into commercial power systems.
Related Compounds
Other III-V Semiconductors in the database.
Data sources & attribution
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (jarvis.nist.gov), NIST. Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020). (LicenseRef-US-Gov-PD)
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project (materialsproject.org). Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013). (CC-BY-4.0)
- oqmd — Data from the OQMD (oqmd.org). Cite: Saal et al., JOM 65, 1501 (2013); Kirklin et al., npj Comp. Mater. 1, 15010 (2015). (CC-BY-4.0)
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