Patent ID: 7708832

Claim:
A method for preparing a substrate for growing gallium nitride, the method comprising: performing thermal cleaning on a surface of a silicon substrate; forming a silicon nitride (Si 3 N 4 ) micro-mask having one or more openings on the surface of the silicon substrate in an in situ manner comprising: forming an Si 3 N 4 thin film on the surface of the silicon substrate in an in situ manner by applying ammonia (NH 3 ) to the surface of the silicon substrate; and etching one or more portions of the Si 3 N 4 thin film by applying hydrogen (H 2 ) to the surface of the Si 3 N 4 thin film so as to expose the silicon substrate surface through one or more openings corresponding to the one or more etched portions; and growing a gallium nitride layer through epitaxial lateral overgrowth (ELO) using an opening in the micro-mask.