Mechanisms of edge-dislocation formation in strained films of zinc blende and diamond cubic semiconductors epitaxially grown on (001)-oriented substrates

Journal Article · Wed Jun 15 00:00:00 EDT 2011 · Journal of Applied Physics

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3597903· OSTI ID:21538440

Bolkhovityanov, Yu B; Deryabin, A S; Gutakovskii, A K; Sokolov, L V ^[1]

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1. Institute of Semiconductor Physics, Novosibirsk 630090 (Russian Federation)

Ninety degree edge misfit dislocations (MDs) are 'sessile' dislocations; such dislocations, however, were found in large amounts in relaxed films. The commonly accepted formation mechanism of such dislocations is an interaction of two complementary 60 deg. dislocations with appropriate Burger's vectors, for example: a/2[101] + a/2 [011] = a/2 [110]. In the present study, four possible types of interaction were analyzed: (i) random meeting of two complementary MDs; (ii) crossing of two complementary 60 deg. MDs in the vicinity of film-substrate interface in systems grown on substrates misoriented from exact (001) orientation; (iii) formation of edge MDs during cross-slipping of a secondary MD; and (iv) induced nucleation of a secondary complementary 60 deg. MD. Examples of discussed interactions are given. Contrary to the widespread opinion that edge MDs in GeSi and InGaAs films grown by MBE on Si and GaAs substrates predominantly form under elastic strains greater than 2% and at the final stage of plastic relaxation, in the present study, we show that such dislocations may also form at an early stage of plastic relaxation in films with less-than-1% lattice misfit with substrate. A necessary condition for that is a sufficient amount of 60 deg. dislocations available in the system by the moment the strained film starts growing. Dislocations (60 deg. ) can be introduced into the system using a preliminarily grown, partially or fully relaxed buffer layer. This layer serves as a source of threading dislocations for the next growing layer that favor the formation of paired complementary MDs and their 'reagents', edge MDs, at the interface with growing film.

• OSTI ID: 21538440
• Journal Information: Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 109, Issue 12; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.3597903; (c) 2011 American Institute of Physics; ISSN 0021-8979
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
BUFFERS
DIAMONDS
EDGE DISLOCATIONS
ELASTICITY
FILMS
GALLIUM ARSENIDES
GERMANIUM ALLOYS
GERMANIUM SILICIDES
HETEROJUNCTIONS
INDIUM ARSENIDES
INTERFACES
MOLECULAR BEAM EPITAXY
PLASTICITY
RELAXATION
RESIDUAL STRESSES
SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIALS
SILICON ALLOYS
STRAINS
SUBSTRATES
ZINC SULFIDES
ALLOYS
ARSENIC COMPOUNDS
ARSENIDES
CARBON
CHALCOGENIDES
CRYSTAL DEFECTS
CRYSTAL GROWTH METHODS
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
DISLOCATIONS
ELEMENTS
EPITAXY
GALLIUM COMPOUNDS
GERMANIUM COMPOUNDS
INDIUM COMPOUNDS
INORGANIC PHOSPHORS
LINE DEFECTS
MATERIALS
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
MINERALS
NONMETALS
PHOSPHORS
PNICTIDES
SEMICONDUCTOR JUNCTIONS
SILICIDES
SILICON COMPOUNDS
STRESSES
SULFIDES
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
ZINC COMPOUNDS