Commensurate and incommensurate phases at reconstructed (In,Ga)As(001) surfaces: x-ray diffraction evidence for a composition lock-in.

Abstract

Surface chemical ordering of group III elements in the ternary alloy ${\mathrm{In}}_{x}{\mathrm{Ga}}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}\mathrm{As}$, stabilizing the $2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}3$ reconstruction at the surface composition I${\mathrm{n}}_{0.67}$G${\mathrm{a}}_{0.33}$As, is demonstrated on the basis of x-ray diffraction data. An incommensurate $2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}n$ reconstruction is observed for lower In surface concentrations, achieved by burying an InAs monolayer under a number of GaAs layers and letting the In surface segregation process operate. A quantitative account of the intensity measured in the incommensurate phase is obtained by using a probabilistic distribution of Ga- and In-rich structural elements.