Electronic Instrumentation Laboratory
Department of Microelectronics

MSc L. Pardon

PhD student
Electronic Instrumentation (EI), Department of Microelectronics

Themes: Merging (Ultra)-Wide bandgap Semiconductors with Integrated Circuits

Biography

Lex received his BSc degree in Electrical Engineering from De Haagse Hogeschool (Delft) in 2020, with a minor in embedded systems. He continued with a MSc degree in Microelectronics at Delft University of Technology, where he focused on alternative wide-bandgap semiconductor materials. In 2025, he continued his MSc research as a researcher, investigating the thermoelectric properties of GaN polarization-induced two-dimensional hole gases for thermoelectric generator applications.

In 2026, he started his PhD on GaN complementary FET technologies, targeting device and process innovations that enable integrated circuits capable of operating in harsh environments. His work aims to realize fully integrated systems-on-chip for conditions where conventional semiconductor platforms typically fail, including cryogenic temperatures.

Publications

  1. Near-constant thermoelectric power factor of GaN two-dimensional hole gas in cryogenic environments
    Pardon, Lex; Leitao, Diana C.; Cardoso, Filipe A.; Dowling, Karen M.;
    Applied Physics Letters,
    Volume 128, Issue 20, pp. 202107, 05 2026. DOI: 10.1063/5.0324609
    Abstract: ... This work investigates the thermoelectric properties of a gallium nitride (GaN)-based two-dimensional hole gas (2DHG) using a double heterojunction, which can be utilized in complementary GaN thermoelectric (TE) platforms for power generation in extreme environments. A 5×1012 cm−2 hole density, a Hall mobility of up to 20 cm2 V−1 s−1, and a Seebeck coefficient of 0.4 mV K−1 have been measured, resulting in a power factor of 0.5–1.0 mW m−1 K−2 over a 300–77 K temperature range. These results demonstrate the stability and usability of the thermoelectric properties of GaN using hole conduction at sub-100 K temperatures, therefore providing clear evidence that GaN-based 2DHGs can function as a stable cryogenic TE platform, opening new opportunities for complementary device architectures (leveraging both 2DHGs for p-type and two-dimensional electron gases for n-type) optimized for extreme environment electronics commonly encountered in deep-space missions, where other materials become unreliable.

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Last updated: 24 Mar 2026

Lex Pardon