Mechanisms of Single‐Event Trap Generation and Field Distribution in High‐k AlGaN/GaN MOSHEMTs for Space Applications

This work investigates the single‐event effects in HfO 2 /Al 2 O 3 ‐based metal oxide semiconductor high electron mobility transistors. A detailed single‐event transient analysis is performed on devices employing HfO 2 and Al 2 O 3 as individual gate dielectrics. To mitigate radiation‐induced degradation, an innovative gate engineering technique is introduced that effectively redistributes the peak electric field within the channel. The proposed devices show strong potential for space applications, as they exhibit reduced strike‐induced fields when exposed to heavy‐ion irradiation up to 104 MeV·cm 2 mg −1 . A combined Al 2 O 3 /HfO 2 gate stack leverages the superior radiation hardness of Al 2 O 3 together with the high‐k dielectric benefits of HfO 2 . This hybrid design results in lower charge collection compared to HfO 2 only devices, while still maintaining excellent gate control. Although the total charge collection remains slightly higher than in pure Al 2 O 3 devices, the trade‐off achieves an optimal balance between radiation tolerance and electrical performance.