X-ray absorption spectroscopy has been used to investigate the electronic structure of as-deposited and oxidized Ni/Au contacts on p-GaN. The Ni K-, L2,3-, and O K-edges x-ray absorption spectra clearly show the formation of NiO in the annealed contacts. Annealing in air increases Ni-site hole concentration and slightly shortens the nearest-neighbor Ni–O bond length, which enhances p – d hybridization and charge transfer from Ni to O. The observed very low specific contact resistance in the oxidized contacts is found to be due to the enhanced hole concentration at the Ni site.
