Controlling Nucleation and Crystal Growth of Ge in a Liquid Metal Solvent
- Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)
In this work, the electrochemical liquid–liquid–solid (ec-LLS) deposition of crystalline germanium (Ge) in a eutectic mixture of liquid gallium (Ga) and indium (In) was analyzed as a function of liquid metal thickness, process temperature, and flux. Through control of reaction parameters, conditions were identified that allow selective nucleation and growth of crystalline Ge at the interface between e-GaIn and a crystalline Si substrate. The crystal growth rates of Ge by ec-LLS as a function of process temperatures were obtained from time-dependent powder X-ray diffraction measurements of crystalline Ge. The driving force, Δμ, for crystal formation in ec-LLS was estimated through analyses of the experimental data in conjunction with predictions from a finite-difference model. The required Δμ for Ge nucleation was tantamount to a supersaturation approximately 102 larger than the equilibrium concentration of Ge in e-GaIn at the investigated temperatures. These points are discussed both in the context of advancing new, low-temperature synthetic methodologies for crystalline semiconductor films and on understanding semiconductor crystal growth more deeply.
- Research Organization:
- Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AR0000523
- OSTI ID:
- 1534431
- Journal Information:
- Crystal Growth and Design, Vol. 16, Issue 12; ISSN 1528-7483
- Publisher:
- American Chemical SocietyCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Web of Science
Similar Records
Probing crystallographic orientation-specific carrier lifetimes in epitaxial Ge/AlAs and InGaAs/InP heterostructures
Heteroepitaxy of GaAs on Si and Ge using alternating, low-energy ion beams