Threading and misfit-dislocation motion in molecular-beam epitaxy-grown HgCdTe epilayers

Abstract

Lattice mismatch between the substrate and the absorber layer in single-color HgCdTe infrared (IR) detectors and between band 1 and band 2 in two-color detectors results in the formation of crosshatch lines on the surface and an array of misfit dislocations at the epi-interfaces. Threading dislocations originating in the substrate can also bend into the interface plane and result in misfit dislocations because of the lattice mismatch. The existence of dislocations threading through the junction region of HgCdTe IR-photovoltaic detectors can greatly affect device performance. High-quality CdZnTe substrates and controlled molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) growth of HgCdTe can result in very low threading-dislocation densities as measured by the etch-pit density (EPD ∼ 104cm−2). However, dislocation gettering to regions of high stress (such as etched holes, voids, and implanted-junction regions) at elevated-processing temperatures can result in a high density of dislocations in the junction region that can greatly reduce detector performance. We have performed experiments to determine if the dislocations that getter to these regions of high stress are misfit dislocations at the substrate/absorber interface that have a threading component extending to the upper surface of the epilayer, or if the dislocations originate at the cap/absorber interface as misfit dislocations. The preceding mechanisms for dislocation motion are discussed in detail, and the possible diode-performance consequences are explored.