Journal of Crystal Growth, Vol.301, 172-176, 2007
Surface segregation of indium atoms during molecular beam epitaxy of InGaAs/GaAs superlattices on (n 1 1)A GaAs substrates
We have investigated substrate off-angle dependence of surface segregation of In atoms during molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) of pseudomorphic In0.08Ga0.92As/GaAs superlattices (SLs) on (n 1 1)A-oriented GaAs substrates (n = 3-5). Surface segregation length of the In atoms (lambda: 1/e decay length of the In content profile along the growth direction) was characterized by high resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD) and low-temperature (1 1 K) photoluminescence (PL) measurements. lambda obtained for the (n 1 1)A SLs were 1.2-1.4 times longer than that (lambda = 1.57 nm) for the simultaneously grown (1 0 0) SL, and the (4 1 1)A SL showed the longest lambda of 2.16 nm. The obtained substrate off-angle dependence of the In segregation length is quite similar to the incorporation life-time (tau(c)) of Ga adatoms reported for MBE growth of GaAs on channeled (1 0 0) substrates, indicating that larger surface migration of Ga adatoms during MBE growth on (n 1 1)A substrates causes enhanced surface segregation of In atoms in the (n 1 1)A InGaAs system. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords:heterointerfaces;high-resolution X-ray diffraction;In surface segregation;MBE;superlattices;GaAs;InGaAs;(n 1 1)A GaAs substrates