Soft X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy of the ultrathin Ba/InGaN interface

Abstract

Electronic structure of the clean In0.22Ga0.78N surface and the ultrathin Ba/In0.22Ga0.78N interface has been studied in situ by the synchrotron-based photoelectron spectroscopy during excitation in the photon energy range of 100–650eV. Changes in the valence band and surface states spectra and in the In 3d, In 4d, N 1s, Ga 3d, Ba 4d, Ba 5p core levels spectra have been investigated under the step-by-step Ba submonolayer deposition. Changes in the surface electronic structure of the InGaN caused by Ba adsorption are found to originate predominantly from the local interaction of the Ga and In dangling bonds and Ba adatoms that results in effect of the suppression of the two intrinsic surface states and appearance of a new induced state. The Ba atomic layer deposition is revealed to induce the charge transfer between the Ba adatoms and the N surface atoms with increasing N-ionicity.