Role of the Ge surface during the end of range dissolution

Abstract

We investigated the structure of end-of-range (EOR) defects in Ge and the role played by the surface during their dissolution caused by annealing. Ge samples were amorphized with Ge+ ions at two different energies (30 and 100 keV) in order to induce, after solid phase epitaxial regrowth, the formation of EOR band at different depths. High resolution x-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy showed that the EOR population consists mainly on small defects and few dislocation loops lying on 〈001〉 planes. The deepest EOR defects are more stable during thermal annealing demonstrating the role of the surface during their dissolution.