Surface reconstructions and morphology of indium gallium arsenide compound semiconductor alloys.

Abstract

Lattice-matched In_0.53Ga_0.47As/InP(001) and compressively strained In_0.27Ga_0.73As/GaAs(001) and In_0.81Ga_0.19As/InP(001) compound semiconductor layers were grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and analyzed by in-situ scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and ex-situ atomic force microscopy (AFM). Regular (4x3) and irregular (nx3) alloy reconstructions were observed at all compositions. In addition, the strained surfaces contain alpha2(2x4) and beta2(2x4) reconstructions at the lower and higher In compositions, respectively. New models were proposed for the (4x3) reconstruction, which are consistent with the experimental results and obey the electron counting rule. In these models, the (4x3) reconstruction is As-rich, but contains As-metal heterodimers, in addition to As dimers and metal dimers. These models can also be used to compose disordered (nx3) surfaces while still obeying the electron counting rule. The experiments suggest that the (2x4) reconstructions are favored by compressive misfit strain and are enriched in In compared with the (4x3)/(nx3) reconstructions. At moderate misfit strains and temperatures, the critical film thickness for three-dimensional (3D) growth is increased by increasing the As overpressure during film deposition. This effect provides an additional method to control the transition to 3D growth and has applications in device fabrication. Large 3D islands form during the annealing of planar pseudomorphic In_0.27Ga_0.73As/GaAs films, and later disappear with continuing annealing. These islands are different from those formed during film deposition. The formation of these features is strain-driven, while their dissolution is triggered by In desorption. A step instability was also observed during annealing at this composition, consisting in the cusping of step edges and the formation of surface pits and step bunches. The driving force for this instability is likely the creation of new step line due to the compressive strain, through step undulation due to the large step separation. The nucleation of 3D pits during the growth of In_0.27Ga_0.73As/GaAs compressively strained films is a localized phenomenon, occurring only in the proximity of 3D islands and at small island separation. The nucleation of pits in these regions was attributed to a reduced critical pit size, as a result of the overlapping strain fields of 3D islands and a reduced adatom density between islands.