Characteristics of high Al content AlxGa1-xN grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

The epitaxial growth of AlxGa1-xN film with high Al content by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) has been accomplished. The resulting Al content was determined to be 54% by high resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD) and Vegard's law. The full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the AlGaN (0002) HRXRD rocking curve was about 597 arcsec. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) image showed a relatively rough surface with grain-like islands, mainly coming from the low surface mobility of adsorbed Alspecies. From transmittance measurement, the cut-off wavelength was around 280 nm and Fabry-Perot fringes were clearly visible in the transmission region. Cathodoluminescence (CL) measurement indicated that there existed a uniformity in the growth direction and a non-uniformity in the lateral direction. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Al compositional inhomogeneity of AlGaN epilayer with a high Al composition grown by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition

The A1 compositional distribution of A1GaN is investigated by cathodoluminescence (CL). Monochromatic CL images and CL spectra reveal a lateral A1 compositional inhomogeneity, which corresponds to surface hexagonal patterns. Cross-sectional CL images show a relatively uniform Al compositional distribution in the growth direction, indicating columnar growth mode of A1GaN films. In addition, a thin A1GaN layer with lower Al composition is grown on top of the buffer A1N layer near the bottom of the A1GaN epilayer because of the larger lateral mobility of Ga adatoms on the growth surface and their accumulation at the grain boundaries.

The effects of LT AlN buffer thickness on the optical properties of AlGaN grown by MOCVD and Al composition inhomogeneity analysis

We have investigated the growth of AlGaN epilayers on a sapphire substrate by metalorganic chemical vapour deposition using various low-temperature ( LT) AlN buffer thicknesses. Combined scanning electron microscopy and cathodoluminescence investigations reveal the correlation between the surface morphology and optical properties of AlGaN films in a microscopic scale. It is found that the suitable thickness of the LT AlN buffer for high quality AlGaN growth is around 20 nm. The Al compositional inhomogeneity of the AlGaN epilayer is attributed to the low lateral mobility of Al adatoms on the growing surface.

Growth of AlGaN epitaxial film with high Al content by metalorganic chemical vapour deposition

A high-Al-content AlGaN epilayer is grown on a low-temperature-deposited AlN buffer on (0001) sapphire by low pressure metalorganic chemical vapour deposition. The dependence of surface roughness, tilted mosaicity, and twisted mosaicity on the conditions of the AlGaN epilayer deposition is evaluated. An AlGaN epilayer with favourable surface morphology and crystal quality is deposited on a 20 nm low-temperature-deposited AlN buffer at a low V/III flow ratio of 783 and at a low reactor pressure of 100 Torr, and the adduct reaction between trimethylaluminium and NH3 is considered.

The growth of high-Al-content InAlGaN quaternary alloys by RF-MBE

High-Al-content InxAlyGa1-x-yN (x = 1-10%, y = 34-45%) quaternary alloys were grown on sapphire by radio-frequency plasma-excited molecular beam epitaxy. Rutherford back-scattering spectrometry, high resolution x-ray diffraction and cathodoluminescence were used to characterize the InAlGaN alloys. The experimental results show that InAlGaN with an appropriate Al/In ratio (near 4.7, which is a lattice-match to the GaN under-layer) has better crystal and optical quality than the InAlGaN alloys whose Al/In ratios are far from 4.7. Some cracks and V-defects occur in high-Al/In-ratio InAlGaN alloys. In the CL image, the cracks and V-defect regions are the emission-enhanced regions.

Correlation between optical and structural properties of (Al,Ga)N layers grown by MOCVD

For both, (Al,Ga)N with low Al content grown on a GaN nucleation layer and (AI,Ga)N with high Al content gown on an AlN nucleation layer, the inhomogeneous distribution of the luminescence is linked to the distribution of defects, which may be due to inversion domains. In the former system, defect regions exhibit a much lower Al content than the nominal one leading to a splitting of the respective luminescence spectra. In the latter system, a domain-like growth is observed with a pyramidal surface morphology and non-radiative recombination within the domain boundaries. (c) 2007 WILEYNCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Effect of Al incorporation on the AlGaN growth by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

The effect of Al incorporation on the AlGaN growth by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition is investigated. With the increase of trimethylalluminum (TMAl) flux, the crystal quality becomes worse, and the epilayer surface becomes rougher. An interesting phenomenon is that the growth rate of AlGaN decrease with increasing TMAl flux, which is opposite to the AlN growth rate dependence on the TMAl flux. All these effects are attributed to the different properties of At atoms due to the higher bond strength of Al-N compared with Ga-N, which lead to lower surface mobility and stronger competitive ability of Al atoms during the growth. The enhancement of the surface mobility of Al is especially important for improving the quality of AlGaN. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Influence of AlN interfacial layer on electrical properties of high-Al-content Al0.45Ga0.55N/GaN HEMT structure

Unintentionally doped high-Al-content Al0.45Ga0.55N/GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) structures with and without AlN interfacial layer were grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) on two-inch sapphire substrates. The effects of AlN interfacial layer on the electrical properties were investigated. At 300 K, high two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) density of 1.66 x 10(11) cm(-2) and high electron mobility of 1346 cm(2) V-1 s(-1) were obtained for the high Al content HEMT structure with a 1 nm AlN interfacial layer, consistent with the low average sheet resistance of 287 Omega/sq. The comparison of HEMT wafers with and without AlN interfacial layer shows that high Al content AlGaN/AlN/GaN heterostructures are potential in improving the electrical properties of HEMT structures and the device performances. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The effects of LT AlN buffer thickness on the properties of high Al composition AlGaN epilayers

To fabricate nitride-based ultraviolet optoelectronic devices, a deposition process for high-Al-composition AlGaN (Al content > 50%) films with reduced dislocation densities must be developed. This paper describes the growth of high-Al-composition AlGaN film on (0001) sapphire via a LT AIN nucleation layer by low pressure metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (LPMOCVD). The influence of the low temperature AIN buffer layer thickness on the high-Al-content AlGaN epilayer is investigated by triple-axis X-ray diffraction (TAXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and optical transmittance. The results show that the buffer thickness is a key parameter that affects the quality of the AlGaN epilayer. An appropriate thickness results in the best structural properties and surface morphology. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Near infrared photoluminescence from Yb,Al Co-implanted SiO2 films on silicon

Intense room-temperature near infrared (NIR) photoluminescence (980 nm and 1032 nm) is observed from Yb,Al co-implanted SiO2 films on silicon. The optical transitions occur between the F-2(5/2) and F-2(7/2) levels of Yb3+ in SiO2. The additional Al-implantation into SiO2 films can effectively improve the concentration quenching effect of Yb3+ in SiO2. Photoluminescence exitation sprectroscopy shows that the NIR photoluminescence is due to the non-radiative energy transfer from Al-implantation-induced non-bridging oxygen hole defects in SiO2 to Yb3+ in the Yb-related luminescent complexes. It is believed that the defect-mediated luminscence of rare-earth ions in SiO2 is very effective.

Comparison of valence band x-ray photoelectron spectrum between Al-N-codoped and N-doped ZnO films

The valence band structures of Al-N-codoped [ZnO:(Al, N)] and N-doped (ZnO:N) ZnO films were studied by normal and soft x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The valence-band maximum of ZnO:(Al, N) shifts up to Fermi energy level by about 300 meV compared with that of ZnO:N. Such a shift can be attributed to the existence of a kind of Al-N in ZnO:(Al, N), as supported by core level XPS spectra and comparison of modified Auger parameters. Al-N increased the relative quantity of Zn-N in ZnO:(Al, N), while N-N decreased that of Zn-N in ZnO:N. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.

In-plane optical anisotropy of symmetric and asymmetric (001) GaAs/Al(Ga)As superlattices and quantum wells

Two sensitive polarized spectroscopies, reflectance difference spectroscopy and photocurrent difference spectroscopy, are used to study the characteristic of the in-plane optical anisotropy in the symmetric and the asymmetric (001) GaAs/Al(Ga)As superlattices (SLs). The anisotropy spectra of the symmetric and the asymmetric SLs show significant difference: for symmetric ones, the anisotropies of the 1HH-->1E transition (1H1E) and 1L1E are dominant, and they are always approximately equal and opposite; while for asymmetric ones, the anisotropy of 1H1E is much less than that of 1L1E and 2H1E, and the anisotropy of 3H2E is very strong. The calculated anisotropy spectra within the envelope function model agree with the experimental results, and a perturbation approach is used to understand the role of the electric field and the interface potential in the anisotropy. (C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.

Optical properties of self-assembled ternary In(GA/Al)As quantum dots on (100) and (N 1 1)B InP substrates

In this paper, we investigated the self-assembled quantum dots formed on (100) and (N11)B (N = 2, 3, 4, 5) InP substrates by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). Two kinds of ternary QDs (In0.9Ga0.1As and In0.9Al0.1As QDs) are grown on the above substrates; Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and photoluminescence (PL) results confirm QDs formation for all samples. The PL spectra reveal obvious differences in integral luminescence, peak position, full-width at half-maximum and peak shape between different oriented surfaces. Highest PL integral intensity is observed from QDs on (411)B surfaces, which shows a potential for improving the optical properties of QDs by using high-index surface. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

DX-like centers in n-type Al-doped ZnS1-xTex grown by molecular-beam epitaxy

Al-related DX-like centers were observed in n-type Al-doped ZnS1-xTex epilayers grown by molecular-beam epitaxy on GaAs substrates. The capacitance-voltage measurement, deep-level transient spectroscopy, and photoconductivity spectroscopy revealed that the behaviors of Al donors in ZnS1-xTex were similar to the so-called DX centers in AlxGa1-xAs. The optical ionization energies (E-i) and emission barriers (E-e) for the observed two Al-related DX-like centers were determined as E-i similar to 1.0 and 2.0cV and E-e similar to 0.21 and 0.39 eV, respectively. It was also shown that the formation of Al-related DX-like centers resulted in a significantly large lattice relaxation in ZnS1-xTex. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Structural and photoluminescence properties of In-0.9(Ga/Al)(0.1)As self-assembled quantum dots on InP substrate

Self-assembled In0.9Ga0.1As, In0.9Al0.1As, and InAs quantum dots (QD) were fabricated in an InAlAs matrix lattice-matched to an InP substrate by molecular beam epitaxy. Preliminary characterizations were performed using transmission electron microscopy, photoluminescence, and reflection high-energy electron diffraction. Experimental results reveal clear differences in QD formation, size distribution, and luminescence between the InAs and In-0.9(Ga/Al)(0.1)As samples, which show the potential of introducing ternary compositions to adjust the structural and optical properties of QDs on an InP substrate. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0021-8979(00)10213-0].