Gallium nitride GaN

GaN · CAS 25617-97-4 · hexagonal, P6_3mc

GaN is a wide-bandgap III-V semiconductor with a wurtzite crystal structure.

10 sources · Updated 2026-10-19 · CC BY 4.0

Evidence level

2 of 5

Lab-measured

Act as a wide-bandgap semiconductor

3.39 eV at 300 K

Hold a high electric field

about 5 x 10^6 V/cm

Carry heat

1.3 W cm-1 degC-1

Move electrons

at most 440 cm2/(V s)

Recipe, share of the weight

  • Ga not statedGallium
  • N not statedNitrogen

Best for

High-voltage and high-frequency power switching, and radiation-tolerant electronics where a wide band gap and high breakdown field matter (NASA ground tests of GaN transistors)

Weakest at

Modest electron mobility compared with the best III-V materials, and the cost and limited supply of gallium

Risk at a glance

  • People Low. Skin sensitizer in the PubChem GHS aggregate
  • If it fails No data. No failure risks recorded
  • Corrosion No data. No corrosion data recorded

Quick facts: GaN

Key properties of GaN
PropertyValueBasis
Density6.15 g/cm³1 sourced value
Thermal conductivity130 W/(m·K)1 sourced value
Thermal expansion (CTE)5.59 ppm/K1 sourced value
Melting point2,500 °C1 sourced value
Specific heat490 J/(kg·K)1 sourced value

What is the density of Gallium nitride (GaN)?

Gallium nitride (GaN) has a density of 6.15 g/cm³. The source and test conditions are listed in the properties table on this page.

What is the thermal conductivity of Gallium nitride (GaN)?

Gallium nitride (GaN) has a thermal conductivity of 130 W/(m·K). The source and test conditions are listed in the properties table on this page.

What is the coefficient of thermal expansion of Gallium nitride (GaN)?

Gallium nitride (GaN) has a coefficient of thermal expansion of 5.59 ppm/K. The source and test conditions are listed in the properties table on this page.

What is the melting point of Gallium nitride (GaN)?

Gallium nitride (GaN) has a melting point of 2,500 °C. The source and test conditions are listed in the properties table on this page.

What is Gallium nitride (GaN) used for?

Uses recorded in the sources include GaN power transistor (EPC2045, 100 V); GaN integrated circuits and optoelectronic devices; EPC1001 enhancement-mode GaN transistor (ground test).

Why it exists

Gallium nitride (GaN) is a wide-bandgap semiconductor. It crystallizes in the wurtzite structure, with a band gap of 3.39 eV at 300 K in one table of the Ioffe archive. That band gap and a breakdown field of about 5 x 10^6 V/cm let GaN switch high voltages in small devices. The sources read here do not describe the manufacturing route.

Where it's used

Power electronics

The EPC2045 datasheet describes a 100 V enhancement-mode GaN power transistor with RDS(on) of 7 mOhm and a continuous drain current of 16 A. It lists open-rack server power, lidar and pulsed power, and isolated power supplies as uses.

Integrated circuits and optoelectronics

The USGS reports that GaN is used to make integrated circuits and optoelectronic devices. ICs accounted for 73% of domestic gallium consumption and optoelectronic devices for 26%, and the USGS lists defense, high-performance computing and telecommunications among the IC uses.

Defense and space electronics

The USGS states that GaAs- and GaN-based ICs are used in many defense-related applications, where it says no effective substitutes exist. NASA tested EPC1001 GaN transistors for space-related use, though only on the ground and at the device level.

Recipe

GaN

GaN is a binary compound with one gallium atom for each nitrogen atom. The Ioffe archive gives the wurtzite structure,.

What GaN is made of
IngredientShare of the weightWhat it does
Gallium Ga not stated Group III metal. Gallium and nitrogen form the covalent bonds of the crystal, and gallium is the element that supply is tight for (see supply).
Nitrogen N not stated Group V element. Nitrogen forms the other half of the 1:1 lattice.

Weight shares are as printed in the sources.

What it can do

Act as a wide-bandgap semiconductor

3.39 eV at 300 K

measured

Ioffe lists 3.39 eV at 300 K (Chow and Ghezzo 1996) and 3.47 eV at 0 K (Bougrov et al. 2001). A wide band gap is the property that the Ioffe archive lists as the reason for high-voltage use; the archive itself does not state the consequence.

Hold a high electric field

about 5 x 10^6 V/cm

measured

The approximate breakdown field in the Ioffe table is about 5 x 10^6 V/cm, and another remark in the same table gives 3.3 x 10^6 V/cm. The two numbers differ, so use the one that matches the test condition.

Carry heat

1.3 W cm-1 degC-1

measured

Ioffe gives a thermal conductivity of 1.3 W cm-1 degC-1 with no temperature printed in the row. Heat spreading in a device was not sourced here.

Move electrons

at most 440 cm2/(V s)

measured

The Ioffe Hall page gives an electron mobility of at most 440 cm2/(V s) in the purest material at 300 K. The electrical table gives at most 1000 cm2/(V s) with no doping stated. The Ioffe archive also has a separate page for the two-dimensional electron gas at AlGaN/GaN interfaces, which was not read in this run.

How it compares

GaN sits at the wide-bandgap end of the semiconductor family. Its band gap of 3.39 eV at 300 K and its breakdown field of about 5 x 10^6 V/cm are the numbers that set it apart in the Ioffe tables. Its electron mobility is modest, at most 440 cm2/(V s) in the purest material, and that figure caps how fast it can switch. The sources read here give no like-for-like comparison with other materials, so no ranking is made in this profile.

The same measurements for each material, so you can compare them. Each row names the key condition under the value; the full conditions and methods are in the numbered notes under Technical details. Compare every grade in the family.

Benchmarks
MeasurementGaN
Thermal behavior and safety
melting point2500 °C2
specific heat0.49 J g-1 °C-13
Thermal conductivity1.3 W cm-1 °C-15
Physical and electrical
Density6.15 g/cm³1
Other measurements
bulk modulus2.04×10^12 dyn/cm²4
BandgapTabulated value cited to Chow and Ghezzo (1996)3.39 eV
BandgapTabulated value cited to Bougrov et al. (2001)3.47 eV
breakdown field5×10^6 V/cm6
breakdown field3.3×10^6 V/cm7
electron mobility440 cm²/(V s)8
electron mobility1000 cm²/(V s)9
hole mobility200 cm²/(V s)10
electron affinity4.1 eV11
dielectric constantTabulated value as printed8.9 dimensionless12
dielectric constant5.35 dimensionless13
lattice constant3.189 Å14
lattice constant5.186 Å15
Thermal expansion (CTE)5.59×10^-6 K-116
electron effective mass0.2 m017

Why choose it, and why not

Good for

  • Wide band gap. The Ioffe table gives 3.39 eV at 300 K, which is what allows high-voltage switching in small devices.
  • Breakdown field. The approximate value of 5 x 10^6 V/cm supports high-voltage devices with thin layers.
  • Radiation tolerance at device level. In NASA ground tests, all eight EPC1001 transistors remained functional after heavy-ion irradiation and 1000 thermal cycles.

Watch out for

  • Electron mobility is limited. The sources give at most 440 cm2/(V s) in the purest material, and the electrical table gives up to 1000 cm2/(V s) with no doping stated.
  • Gallium supply is concentrated. The USGS says China accounted for 99% of worldwide primary low-purity gallium production, and US imports supply all of its gallium.
  • Radiation and cycling tests are device-level. They do not show that the GaN material itself is radiation-hard, and irradiated devices showed higher leakage current.

GaN is a well-documented wide-bandgap semiconductor. Its band gap, density, melting point and thermal conductivity are printed in the Ioffe archive. The space-related evidence is limited to ground tests of one transistor family, and the supply of gallium is concentrated in China.

Technical details

For scientists and researchers. Everything above comes from the record below: every number with its method, its conditions and its source.

Notes

The method, full conditions and any caveat for the numbered rows above.

Notes for the numbered rows
#MeasurementMethodConditionsCaveat
1DensityTabulated value as printed in the Ioffe basic parameters table for wurtzite GaNstructure wurtzitetemperature 300 K—
2melting pointTabulated value in the Ioffe basic parameters table, cited to Bougrov et al. (2001) and Porowski (1997)basis melting point as printed; the same table points to the equilibrium N2 pressure over GaN (Porowski 1997)—
3specific heatTabulated value as printed; attributed to Bougrov et al. (2001)temperature not printed in the table row—
4bulk modulusPrinted as 20.4 x 10^11 dyn cm-2 and converted to 2.04e12 for entry; the printed value is kept in conditions.unit_in_sourceunit in source 20.4 x 10^11 dyn cm-2—
5Thermal conductivityTabulated value as printed; the remark cites Sichel and Pankove (1977) and Chow and Ghezzo (1996)temperature not printed in the table rowstructure table block covers zinc blende and wurtzite—
6breakdown fieldApproximate value as printed in the Ioffe electrical properties table (no attribution printed for this row)structure wurtzitetemperature 300 Kapproximate printed as ~5 x 10^6 V cm-1—
7breakdown fieldValue printed in the same table with the remark Chow and Ghezzo (1996); lower than the approximate value abovestructure wurtzitetemperature 300 K—
8electron mobilityUpper limit as printed on the Ioffe Hall effect page, cited to Ilegems (1972) and Ilegems and Dingle (1973)bound upper limit as printed (=<)temperature 300 Kmaterial purest material, n about 10^17 cm-3—
9electron mobilityUpper limit as printed in the Ioffe electrical table for wurtzite GaN; it conflicts with the 440 cm2/(V s) figure from the Hall page, and both are keptbound upper limit as printed (=<)temperature 300 Kdoping not stated—
10hole mobilityUpper limit as printed in the Ioffe electrical table for wurtzite GaNbound upper limit as printed (=<)temperature 300 K—
11electron affinityTabulated value attributed to Bougrov et al. (2001)structure wurtzitetemperature 300 K—
12dielectric constant—frequency staticstructure wurtzitetemperature 300 K—
13dielectric constantTabulated value attributed to Bougrov et al. (2001)frequency high frequencystructure wurtzitetemperature 300 K—
14lattice constantValue attributed to Qian et al. (1996) as printedaxis astructure wurtzitetemperature 300 K—
15lattice constantValue attributed to Bougrov et al. (2001) as printedaxis cstructure wurtzitetemperature 300 K—
16Thermal expansion (CTE)Thermal expansion coefficient along a as printed (attributed to Qian et al. 1996)axis astructure wurtzite—
17electron effective massValue attributed to Bougrov et al. (2001); the same table lists 0.27 m0 from Rheinlander and Neumann (1974), which is not used herestructure wurtzitetemperature 300 K—

Corrosion and compatibility

What happens when it meets other materials and environments.

Corrosion and compatibility
EnvironmentConcernWhat happens
Thermal cycling between -55 and +125 degC, 1000 cycles (device level, EPC1001 transistors) not rated All eight tested transistors remained functional after 1000 cycles.1
Heavy-ion irradiation (Au 2342 MeV; Xe 1569 MeV), doses 7886 to 22718 rad as printed not rated Irradiated devices stayed functional, with higher leakage current as the main change.2
Corrosion details
#EnvironmentDetailsTest conditions
1 Thermal cycling between -55 and +125 degC, 1000 cycles (device level, EPC1001 transistors) Threshold voltage fell at first and levelled off after about 130 cycles. Output characteristics varied from cycle to cycle, and RDS(on) fell into two clusters at 1000 cycles, with the cause unknown. —
2 Heavy-ion irradiation (Au 2342 MeV; Xe 1569 MeV), doses 7886 to 22718 rad as printed The main impact of radiation was an increase in leakage current. Irradiated parts were more stable in RDS(on) than expected during cycling. —

Risks and side effects

Hazards to people, what happens when a cell overheats, and how the material is handled and stored.

For people

PubChem's aggregated GHS data give a skin sensitization statement (H317) for most company reports. The sources read here give no exposure limit for GaN.

The powder
PubChem reports H317 (may cause an allergic skin reaction) in 97.8% of 45 company reports, with a Warning signal word. About 2.2% of reports say the chemical does not meet GHS hazard criteria.
Dust and breathing
The PubChem hazards summary cites RTECS for lung fibrosis in rats after intratracheal lethal-dose studies. These are summary entries, not a full toxicology study.

Test details
The original wording and numbers from the sources, for readers who want them.

Failure risks

Failure risks
FailureTrigger and consequence
Heavy-ion irradiation of EPC1001 GaN transistors (device level)Au 2342 MeV and Xe 1569 MeV ions, doses 7886 to 22718 rad as printedThe main impact was an increase in leakage current. All eight parts (four control, four irradiated) remained functional.
Thermal cycling of EPC1001 transistors (device level)1000 cycles between -55 and +125 degCTransconductance varied inconsistently between devices, and RDS(on) at 1000 cycles fell into two clusters that differ at p below 0.005 (cause unknown).

Handling and storage

  • PubChem lists precautionary statements for GaN, including P261 (avoid breathing dust), P272, P280 (wear protective gloves), P302+P352 (if on skin, wash with plenty of water), P321, P333+P317, P362+P364 and P501.

Supply and geography

How common the raw materials are and where they come from.

Gallium

Not read in a source for this profile (the USGS gallium chapter does not give crustal abundance)

Top producers (2025)
China 99%
Recycling
USGS: old scrap is not recovered. New scrap from GaAs device manufacture is reprocessed to recover high-purity gallium at one facility in New York.
Substitutes
USGS: silicon is the principal competitor with GaAs in solar cells. No effective substitute is listed for GaAs or GaN in many defense-related applications.