Structure and optical properties of InN and InAlN films grown by rf magnetron sputtering

Abstract

The structure and optical properties of InN and In-rich InAlN films grown by magnetron sputtering were investigated. The XRD results show that these films are highly c-axis oriented. The film morphology and microstructure of these films were observed by AFM and SEM which reveals that the films grown in island growth mode. Optical properties of these films were studied by absorption method. The band gap energy of the InN film grown under substrate temperature of 400 °C is 1.38 eV. By studying the E g values of InN films deposited under different substrate temperature, the Burstein-Moss effect on band gap of InN was examined. The significant band gap bowing of our In-rich InAlN films was found to be correlated with the In contents. The bowing parameter of 3.68 eV was obtained which is in agreement with previous theoretical predictions.