AVS 45th International Symposium
    Nanometer-scale Science and Technology Division Monday Sessions
       Session NS+EM+SS-MoA

Paper NS+EM+SS-MoA6
Kinetics of Anion Cross Incorporation in Type-II Heterostructures Characterized with XSTM@footnote 1@

Monday, November 2, 1998, 3:40 pm, Room 321/322/323

Session: Cross-sectional Scanning Tunneling Microscopy of Semiconductors
Presenter: J. Steinshnider, Texas A&M University
Authors: J. Steinshnider, Texas A&M University
J. Harper, Texas A&M University
M. Weimer, Texas A&M University
D. Zhang, University of Houston
C.H. Lin, University of Houston
S.S. Pei, University of Houston
Correspondent: Click to Email
We have used cross-sectional scanning tunneling microscopy (XSTM) to examine MBE material quality in the mixed-anion InAs/GaSb/AlSb system under growth conditions (including the use of cracked arsenic and antimony sources) similar to those presently employed for type-II quantum well and interband cascade lasers. Two apparently different anion defects are noted within the antimonide layers. The demonstration of a linear correlation between the defect densities observed with STM and the arsenic valve setting during antimonide-layer growth establishes background arsenic incorporation as the common origin for both of these defects.@footnote 2@ The distribution of As substitutional defects in a (110) cleavage plane is analyzed by way of the two-dimensional pair correlation function. We observe a pronounced attractive correlation in the [110] direction, parallel to the Sb dimer bonds of the (1x3) reconstructed growth surface, whereas the distribution in the orthogonal [001] direction is essentially random. This anisotropic correlation reflects the kinetics of arsenic dimer incorporation during growth and not the equilibrium distribution associated with strain-mediated repulsive interactions. @FootnoteText@ @footnote 1@ Work supported by the National Science Foundation (DMR-9633011). @footnote 2@ J. Harper, M. Weimer, D. Zhang, C.H. Lin, and S.S. Pei, JVST B 16, in press (1998).