Experimental and theoretical characterization of the surface acoustic wave propagation properties of GaN epitaxial layers on c-plane sapphire

Surface acoustic wave (SAW) propagation properties of gallium nitride (GaN) epitaxial layers on sapphire were theoretically and experimentally characterized. GaN thin films were grown on a c-plane sapphire substrate using a metalorganic chemical vapor deposition system. The experimental characterization of SAW propagation properties was performed with a linear array of interdigital transducer structures, while SAW velocities were calculated by matrix methods. Experimentally, we found pseudo-SAW and high-velocity pseudo-SAW modes in the GaN/sapphire structure, which had a good agreement with calculated velocities.