Efficiency Limits in Coalesced AlGaN Nanowire Ultraviolet LEDs

Nanowire AlGaN III‐nitride LEDs are claimed as potential high‐efficiency solid‐state photon sources spanning to the short‐wavelength deep ultraviolet (UV). Nanowire LEDs (NWLEDs) emitting in the UV are compared with a transparent n‐AlGaN top electrode formed by coalescing the top region of nanowire–ensemble LEDs with commonly employed opaque conformal metallic electrodes used for nanowire‐based devices. The use of a transparent contact results in an increase in the wall plug efficiency of >25×, exceeding the expected increase due to enhanced photon‐extraction efficiency. Increased nanowire connectivity reduces the short‐circuit pathways, enabling higher device yields of relatively large‐area (>1 mm2) UV nanowire–ensemble LEDs. Despite these large relative improvements, the absolute output efficiency remains miniscule (<1 m%). Electroluminescence microscopy demonstrates that <0.1% of nanowires within the ensemble contribute to emission. The single‐nanowire efficiency is estimated and points toward improvement of the homogeneity of the injection current as a crucial step for realizing commercially viable UV NWLEDs.