ABSTRACT
Thin-film growth is now one of the basic technologies in semiconductor device performance for millimetre wave applications. First of all it concerns with homoepitaxial and heteroepitaxial multilayer structures of semiconduc tors, in particular, AmBv group. Gallium arsenide is now the most widely employed of this family, so the problem of Schottky barrier and ohmic contacts to GaAs is of great practical interest. Besides, due to the advanced technology of GaAs crystal growth it can be used as a basic material for the investigation of the main features of thin metal film formation, which may then be used in application to other AmBv semiconductors. At least three kinds of thin film metallization are used in millimetre wave devices: Schottky-barrier contacts, ohmic contacts and microstrip interconnections. Gold as a metal is feasible and widely used due to its chemical and mechanical properties. It can be deposited with thermal evaporation in vacuum that is widely used both in research and production of the devices.
