Synergistic Radiation Effect of 300 MeV Proton and Heavy Ion on Electrical Characteristics of β-Ga₂O₃ SBD

This work investigates the synergistic radiation effects of β-Ga₂O₃ Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) under 300 MeV proton and 143 MeV Argon (Ar) heavy ion irradiation. Following 300 MeV proton irradiation, we observed an increase in reverse leakage current, a reduction in the Schottky barrier height, and a decrease in forward conduction current in the β-Ga₂O₃ SBDs. The Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy (DLTS) measurements revealed the emergence of new interface traps (E2, E3) and an increase in the concentration of bulk traps (E2*) after proton irradiation, which are likely the primary contributors to the degradation of SBD performance. In subsequent heavy ion irradiation experiments, SBD previously subjected to proton irradiation experienced single-event burnout (SEB) at a bias of −100 V. At the same time, non-proton irradiated SBDs exhibited SEB at −180 V. These results indicate that cumulative radiation effects significantly enhance the probability of single event burnout, underscoring the challenges to the reliability of β- Ga₂O₃ SBDs in space environments.