Effect of current spreading layer on Internal Quantum efficiency and optical power of flip chip gallium nitride LEDs with circular contacts

The unique properties of the Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) make it an excellent choice as a current spreading layer in Flip Chip Light Emitting Diodes (FCLEDs) and other optoelectronic devices. Herein, the performance of FCLEDs is analyzed by a precise mathematical model for the current spreading length (L_s) produced by the ITO layer under circular-shaped contacts. The expressions are formulated without approximations using ABC-model for extracting the Internal Quantum Efficiency (IQE, ${\eta }_{\mathrm{int}}$), optical power (P_int) and Emission Intensity (EI). The thickness $\left(t_{ITO}\right)$ and resistivity $\left({\rho }_{ITO}\right)$ of the ITO layer are varied for different current densities, and their adverse effects on IQE are determined. At lower current densities, IQE increases with thickness and decreases for high resistivity of the ITO layer. At higher current densities, there is a gradual decrease in IQE irrespective of the ITO layer presence due to “Efficiency Droop”. The IQE in the proposed work is 82 % at a thickness of 50–200 nm and current density of 8 A/cm², and the optical power is around 40 mW, showing good agreement with the experimental data, making it feasible for future high-performance FCLEDs.