 Shuji Nakamura

Shuji Nakamura is an electrical engineer whose work helped make efficient blue light-emitting diodes possible using gallium nitride and indium gallium nitride. His work combined improved material growth, activation of p-type semiconductor and the design of an emitting active layer.^[ref]

One crucial result concerned hydrogen binding to magnesium acceptor impurities in gallium nitride. The resulting complexes suppress their electrical activity; thermal treatment can remove that passivation. In an emitting semiconductor heterostructure, injected electrons and holes recombine in an active layer with a smaller band gap than the surrounding material, helping confine the carriers where light is produced. This connects material chemistry with an operating electronic device.^[ref]