Low-pressure Metalorganic Vapor Research Articles

Surface morphology and photoluminescence studies of Sb-doped ZnO layers grown using MOCVD

ZnO and ZnO:Sb films were deposited using low pressure metal organic chemical vapor deposition on C- and R-oriented sapphire and O-polar ZnO substrates. Surface morphologies were studied using scanning electron microscopy. Whereas ZnO films grown on C-sapphire show a rough surface and hexagonal rods, the doped ZnO:Sb layers exhibit a relatively smoother surface, indicating a possible surfactant effect of antimony. The secondary ion mass spectrometry measurements permit to determine the antimony profile in the doped layers. Sb concentrations from 10 18 to 10 20 at/cm 3 were measured, depending on the growth conditions and substrate nature. Photoluminescence spectra exhibit donor-acceptor pair emission at 3.22 eV.

Study of High-Quality and Crack-Free GaN Growth on 3C-SiC/Separation by Implanted Oxygen (111)

We investigated the growth of GaN on 3C-SiC fabricated by the deposition and carbonization of a separation by implanted oxygen (SIMOX) surface. The dependences of AlN buffer thickness on the crystalline quality and surface morphology of the GaN grown on 3C-SiC/SIMOX (111) by low-pressure metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy (LP-MOVPE) were examined. We studied the stress of GaN by the in situ monitoring of the reflectance and substrate curvature. High-quality GaN with a smooth surface was obtained using an AlN buffer of 10 nm thickness. Moreover, the fabrication of crack-free GaN was achieved using an AlN/GaN superlattice (SL) structure on an AlGaN/AlN buffer.

Dependence of Curie temperature on surface strain in InMnAs epitaxial structures

Pairs of self-assembled InMnAs quantum dot structures and reference epitaxial layers (0 < x < 0.13) were prepared on GaAs substrates by low-pressure metal organic vapour phase epitaxy. Magnetic moment measurements indicated that reference epitaxial layer had a Curie temperature of 343 K independent on the composition. On the other hand, the quantum dots prepared under Stranski–Krastanov growth mode from the identical gas phase composition showed a lower value of Curie temperature. This value varied from 41 to 235 K in relation to the material composition. Moiré fringes at transmission electron microscopy plan view were used for characterization of strain in InMnAs quantum dot structures.

ZnO Grown by Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition: Effect of Substrate on Optical and Structural Properties

This paper reports the effects of the following substrates on the optical, structural and morphological properties of ZnO thin films: Si (100), Si (111), c- and r-sapphire, glass, GaAs and ZnO. The thin films were deposited by low pressure Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition using diethylzinc and tertiary butanol as the zinc and oxygen sources, respectively. X-ray diffraction analysis shows that all the ZnO layers are c-axis orientated. Scanning Electron microscopy reveals similar morphology for all the substrates used, with hexagonal columns having cone shape ends being evident. The photoluminescence spectra are similar, but the various transitions have different relative intensities. It is clear that the different substrates influence neither the orientation of the films, nor the surface morphology, significantly. The photoluminescence hints at larger stacking fault densities in films grown on silicon and glass, however, as evidenced by stronger basal plane stacking fault-related luminescence at ~3.319 eV in the relevant low temperature photoluminescence spectra.

Substrate-free large gap InGaN solar cells with bottom reflector

In this study, we report on the realization of the In 0.085Ga 0.915N p– i– n solar cell by low-pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE). The w–2θ scans of (0 0 0 2) reflection observation indicate good suppression of phase separation for the p– i– n solar cells with a 150-nm-thick i-In 0.085Ga 0.915N epilayer. The sharp and narrow signals in the photoluminescence spectra of In 0.085Ga 0.915N provided evidence for high material quality, even through the epilayer thickness exceeded its critical value. Furthermore, the laser lift-off (LLO) technique is used to fabricate the substrate-free thin-film solar cells (TF-SCs) with a bottom reflector. Although the samples have suffered from thermal-gradient-induced damage during LLO process, the fabricated TF-SCs still exhibit a low forward voltage of 3.3 V at 20 mA along with an ideality factor of 3.1. Finally, since unabsorbed photons can be reflected by the bottom reflector, the TF-SCs show a 13.6% increase in short-circuit current density as compared to their counterparts without a bottom reflector.

Particular electrical quality of a-plane GaN films grown on r-plane sapphire by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition

Nonpolar (112̄0) a-plane GaN films have been grown by low-pressure metal-organic vapor deposition on r-plane (11̄02) sapphire substrate. The structural and electrical properties of the a-plane GaN films are investigated by high-resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and van der Pauw Hall measurement. It is found that the Hall voltage shows more anisotropy than that of the c-plane samples; furthermore, the mobility changes with the degree of the van der Pauw square diagonal to the c direction, which shows significant electrical anisotropy. Further research indicates that electron mobility is strongly influenced by edge dislocations.

High-performance electroabsorption modulator

A 100-μm-long electroabsorption modulator monolithically integrated with passive waveguides at the input and output ports is fabricated through ion implantation induced quantum well intermixing, using only a two-step low-pressure metal-organic vapor phase epitaxial process. An InGaAsP/InGaAsP intra-step quantum well is introduced to the active region to improve the modulation properties. In the experiment high modulation speed and high extinction ratio are obtained simultaneously, the electrical-to-optical frequency response (E/O response) without any load termination reaches to 22 GHz, and extinction ration is as high as 16 dB.

Structural and optical characterization of MOVPE grown InGaP/GaAs MQWs for advanced photovoltaic devices

The optimization of the electronic properties of InGaP/GaAs MQWs, to be inserted in multilayers heterostructure for novel photovoltaic devices, was performed by structural, optical and photoelectrical measurements. Different sequences of nominally undoped InGaP and GaAs alternated layers were grown by low-pressure metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy, employing tertiarybutylarsine and tertiarybutylphosphine as metalorganic precursors for the V-group elements. In order to minimize the As/P exchange effect, the interface In segregation, and to control the whole lattice matching, single and multi-quantum wells (MQWs) with different: (i) periods, (ii) well widths, (iii) growth temperatures, (iv) gas-switching sequences at the interfaces and (v) indium concentrations in the InGaP alloy, were prepared and investigated. The interface sharpness and the compositional fluctuation of thick MQW region containing up to 40 well-barrier sequences were investigated for the modelling, realization and evaluation of test structures based on low-dimensional systems for third generation solar cells.

Improvements in a-plane GaN crystal quality by AlN/AlGaN superlattices layers

Non-polar (1 1 2¯ 0) a-plane GaN films have been grown by low-pressure metal-organic vapor deposition on r-plane (1 1¯ 0 2) sapphire substrate. We report on an approach of using AlN/AlGaN superlattices (SLs) for crystal quality improvement of a-plane GaN on r-plane sapphire. Using X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy measurements, we show that the insertion of AlN/AlGaN SLs improves crystal quality, reduces surface roughness effectively and eliminates triangular pits on the surface completely.

Homoepitaxy of ZnO on bulk and thin film substrates by low temperature metal organic chemical vapor deposition using tert-butanol

Homoepitaxial growths of ZnO were performed by low pressure metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) on both bulk hydrothermal and thin film buffer layers of ZnO grown by pulsed laser deposition on c-sapphire substrates. The surface roughness, photoluminescence, and x-ray diffraction (0002) peak omega rocking-curve line widths for the bulk and thin film substrates were similar prior to MOCVD growth. After MOCVD growth, it was found that the surface morphology, crystallographic quality, and optical properties of the ZnO layers were far superior to those typically observed for heteroepitaxial growth of ZnO layers on c-sapphire by MOCVD. The MOCVD layers were comparable for growths on both the bulk substrate and the thin film buffer layer. Furthermore, no significant impact of carrier gas was observed. The quality of the ZnO layer appeared to be correlated with the surface morphology and the crystalline quality of the substrate rather than being dependent on whether the substrate was in bulk or thin film form.

Comparative study on structural and optical properties of ZnO films grown by metalorganic molecular beam deposition and metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

Polycrystalline zinc oxide films were grown on glass substrates by low pressure metal organic chemical vapor deposition (LP-MOCVD) and metal organic molecular beam deposition (MOMBD) using diethlyzinc and water as precursors. With increasing substrate temperature (TS), preferential growth direction of the LP-MOCVD films changed from c-axis direction to a-axis direction, while that of the MOMBD films changed from random direction to c-axis direction. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra of the LP-MOCVD films exhibited an orange band emission related to interstitial oxygen atoms, while those of the MOMBD films exhibited a green band emission related to oxygen vacancies. This PL result suggests that the LP-MOCVD films are in oxygen excess condition, but the MOMBD films are in oxygen deficient condition. Photoacoustic measurements revealed that the energy level of the nonradiative center formed in the LP-MOCVD films is deeper than that in the MOMBD films.

Deep defects in GaN/AlGaN/SiC heterostructures

Deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) measurements were carried out on GaN/AlGaN/SiC heterostructures prepared by low-pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. Si-doped n-GaN layers were grown using an n-AlGaN nucleation layer (8% and 30% of aluminum) on two kinds of p-type 4H-SiC substrates. The DLTS spectra of on-axis (0001) grown samples exhibit a dominant peak of a majority carrier trap with apparent activation energy close to 0.80 eV and capture cross section of about 5×10−14 cm2 regardless of the AlGaN composition. The energy of this deep level decreases with increasing electrical field due to Poole–Frenkel effect. Carrier capture kinetics indicates interacting point defects arranged along a line, probably a threading dislocation. Two additional traps (0.52 and 0.83 eV) were found in on-axis samples with 8% AlGaN composition. For 30% Al content, only a 0.83 eV level was detected. Majority carrier trap with activation energy of 0.66 eV was observed in the off-axis grown samples. This level is probably related to an interface defect or to a defect lying near the heterojunction interface.

Structural Characterization of GaN Epitaxial Layers Grown on 4H-SiC Substrates with Different Off-Cut

The influence of surface preparation of 4H-SiC substrates on structural properties of GaN grown by low pressure metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy was studied. Substrate etching has an impact on the crystallographic structure of epilayers and improves its crystal quality. The GaN layers were characterized by RBS/channelling and HRXRD measurements. It was observed that on-axis 4H-SiC is most suitable for GaN epitaxy and that substrate etching improves the crystal quality of epilayer.

Optical properties of MOVPE-grown a-plane GaN and AlGaN

a-Plane GaN and AlGaN were grown on r-plane sapphire by low-pressure metal-organic vapor epitaxy (LP-MOVPE), and the effects of reactor pressure (from 40 to 500 Torr) and growth temperature (from 1020 to 1100 °C) on the crystalline quality and surface morphology of a-plane GaN were studied. The a-plane GaN grown under 40 Torr had a smooth-surface morphology but a poor crystalline quality; however, the a-plane GaN grown under 500 Torr had higher crystalline quality and optical properties, whose full-width at half-maximum of the X-ray rocking curve (XRC-FWHM) and intensity of yellow luminescence (YL) were smaller. Furthermore, the optical properties of a-plane GaN were investigated by photoluminescence (PL) in detail. We also studied the emission properties of a-plane Al 0.35Ga 0.65N grown at room temperature.

Free and bound exciton fine structures in AlN epilayers grown by low-pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy

Exciton fine structures were observed in partially polarized optical reflectance and cathodoluminescence (CL) spectra of AlN epilayers grown by low-pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy on (0001) Al2O3 substrates. A few free and four bound exciton lines were clearly resolved in the low-temperature CL spectra of the lowest threading dislocation density (∼1×108 cm−2) AlN film. From the energy difference between the ground-state and the first excited states, the hydrogenic A-exciton binding energy in the present compressively strained (Δa/a≈−1.68%) AlN was estimated to be approximately 51 meV.

AlN Periodic Multiple-layer Structures Grown by MOVPE for High Quality Buffer Layer

AbstractHigh crystal quality crack-free AlN on sapphire was grown by low pressure metal organic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE). Growth experiments combine two recent approaches: the ammonia pulse-flow method and ammonia continuous-flow growth mode by varying the V/III ratio. The detailed aspects of MOVPE, employing the periodic multilayer approach at low, intermediate, and high temperatures are described. This method yields significant reduction of screw dislocation density and provides very smooth surface for thin AlN layers.

One Step Nano-Selective Area Growth of Localized InAs/InP Quantum Dots For Single Photon Source Applications

AbstractWe demonstrate the feasibility of a new approach of Nano Selective Area Growth (Nano-SAG) to precisely localize InAs/InP QDs, by low-pressure Metalorganic Vapour Phase Epitaxy (MOVPE). This approach is based on a partial patterning with a dielectric mask containing nano-openings. The two main advantages of MOVPE are: the important diffusion length of the active species and the inhibition of growth on the dielectric mask. We demonstrate the synthesis of localized nanostructures with high structural properties and the precise control of their dimensions at the nanometer scale. This allows in principle the precise control of the tunability of the emission length.

GaAlN/GaN HEMT heterostructures grown on SiCopSiC composite substrates for HEMT application

This paper reports on low-pressure metalorganic vapour deposition (LP-MOCVD) growth optimisation of GaAlN/GaN heterostructures grown on SiCopSiC (silicon carbide-oxyde-polycrystalline silicon carbide) composite substrates for HEMT applications, and on the first device performances obtained with these structures. Some critical growth parameters, such as growth temperature, V/III ratio and nucleation layer at the GaN/SiC interface, have been investigated, and their impact on physical properties of these heterostructures is studied. Such optimisation of the growth conditions has led to GaAlN/GaN HEMT heterostructures which are successfully compared in terms of material quality to the standard HEMT heterostructures grown on bulk SiC substrates. Their electrical characteristics, such as sheet carrier density ( N s), mobility ( μ), pinch-off voltage ( V p) or sheet resistance ( R s), are very similar to those obtained on bulk SiC substrates and their crystallographic properties, assessed by high-resolution X-ray diffraction (HR-XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM), seem to be in good agreement with the above-mentioned electrical characteristics. First devices with 0.5 μm gate length, made on these specific composite wafers, exhibit very good microwave performances, with output power of 5 W/mm at 10 GHz, similar to those obtained on bulk SiC substrates, showing the promising capability of SiCopSiC composite substrates.

Time-resolved characterization of InAsP∕InP quantum dots emitting in the C-band telecommunication window

The dynamic response of InAsP quantum dots, grown on InP(001) substrates by low-pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy emitting around 1.55μm, is investigated by means of time-resolved microphotoluminescence as a function of temperature. Exciton lifetime steadily increases from 1ns at low temperature to reach 4ns at 300K while the integrated photoluminescence intensity decreases only by a factor of 23. These characteristics give evidence that such InAsP∕InP quantum dots provide a strong carrier confinement even at room temperature and that their dynamic response is not affected by thermally activated nonradiative recombination up to room temperature.

The influence of substrate surface preparation on LP MOVPE GaN epitaxy on differently oriented 4H-SiC substrates

The influence of surface preparation and off-cut of 4H-SiC substrates on morphological and structural properties of GaN grown by low-pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy was studied. Substrate etching has an impact on the surface roughness of epilayers and improves its crystal quality. The GaN layers were characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and high-resolution X-ray diffractometry (HRXRD) measurements. It was observed that on-axis 4H-SiC is most suitable for GaN epitaxy and that substrate etching improves the surface morphology of epilayer.