Structural Defects in Laterally Overgrown GaN Layers Grown on Non-polar Substrates

Abstract

ABSTRACTTransmission electron microscopy was used to study defects in lateral epitaxial layers of GaN which were overgrown on a template of a-plane (1120) GaN grown on (1102) r-plane Al2O3. A high density of basal stacking faults is formed in these layers because the c-planes of wurtzite structure are arranged along the growth direction. Density of these faults is decreasing at least by two orders of magnitude lower in the wings compared to the seed areas. Prismatic stacking faults and threading dislocations are also observed, but their densities drastically decrease in the wings. The wings grow with opposite polarities and the Ga-wing width is at least 6 times larger than N-wing and coalescence is rather difficult. Some tilt and twist was detected using Large Angle Convergent Beam Electron Diffraction.