Gallium-containing nitride crystals are disclosed, comprising: a top surface having a crystallographic orientation within about 5 degrees of a plane selected from a (0001) +c-plane and a (000-1) −c-plane; a substantially wurtzite structure; n-type electronic properties; an impurity concentration of hydrogen greater than about 5×1017 cm−3; an impurity concentration of oxygen between about 2×1017 cm−3 and about 1×1020 cm−3; an [H]/[O] ratio of at least 0.3; an impurity concentration of at least one of Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs, Ca, F, and CI greater than about 1×1016 cm−3; a compensation ratio between about 1.0 and about 4.0; an absorbance per unit thickness of at least 0.01 cm−1 at wavenumbers of approximately 3175 cm−1, 3164 cm−1, and 3150 cm−1; and wherein, at wavenumbers between about 3200 cm−1 and about 3400 cm−1 and between about 3075 cm−1 and about 3125 cm−1, said gallium-containing nitride crystal is essentially free of infrared absorption peaks having an absorbance per unit thickness greater than 10% of the absorbance per unit thickness at 3175 cm−1.