Showing papers on "Epitaxy published in 2015"

Epitaxy of semiconductor-superconductor nanowires.

Abstract: Molecular beam epitaxy now enables the growth of nanowire heterostructures composed of a semiconducting core and a metallic epitaxial shell. This improved synthesis leads to the creation of a hard superconducting gap with no subgap states.

Homoepitaxial growth of β-Ga2O3 layers by halide vapor phase epitaxy

Abstract: Thick high-purity β-Ga2O3 layers of high crystalline quality were grown homoepitaxially by halide vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) using gaseous GaCl and O2 on (001) β-Ga2O3 substrates prepared by edge-defined film-fed growth. The surface morphology and structural quality of the grown layer improved with increasing growth temperature. X-ray diffraction ω-rocking curves for the (002) and (400) reflections for the layer grown at 1000 °C had small full widths at half maximum. Secondary ion mass spectrometry and electrical characteristics revealed that the growth of high-purity β-Ga2O3 layers with low effective donor concentration (Nd − Na < 1013 cm−3) is possible by HVPE.

1.8 mΩ·cm2 vertical GaN-based trench metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistors on a free-standing GaN substrate for 1.2-kV-class operation

Abstract: In this paper, we report on 1.2-kV-class vertical GaN-based trench metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) on a free-standing GaN substrate with a low specific on-resistance. A redesigned epitaxial layer structure following our previous work with a regular hexagonal trench gate layout enables us to reduce the specific on-resistance to as low as 1.8 mΩcm2 while obtaining a sufficient blocking voltage for 1.2-kV-class operation. Normally-off operation with a threshold voltage of 3.5 V is also demonstrated. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on vertical GaN-based MOSFETs with a specific on-resistance of less than 2 mΩcm2.

Template-assisted selective epitaxy of III–V nanoscale devices for co-planar heterogeneous integration with Si

Abstract: III–V nanoscale devices were monolithically integrated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates by template-assisted selective epitaxy (TASE) using metal organic chemical vapor deposition. Single crystal III–V (InAs, InGaAs, GaAs) nanostructures, such as nanowires, nanostructures containing constrictions, and cross junctions, as well as 3D stacked nanowires were directly obtained by epitaxial filling of lithographically defined oxide templates. The benefit of TASE is exemplified by the straightforward fabrication of nanoscale Hall structures as well as multiple gate field effect transistors (MuG-FETs) grown co-planar to the SOI layer. Hall measurements on InAs nanowire cross junctions revealed an electron mobility of 5400 cm2/V s, while the alongside fabricated InAs MuG-FETs with ten 55 nm wide, 23 nm thick, and 390 nm long channels exhibit an on current of 660 μA/μm and a peak transconductance of 1.0 mS/μm at VDS = 0.5 V. These results demonstrate TASE as a promising fabrication approach for heterogeneou...

Photoinduced Charge‐Carrier Generation in Epitaxial MOF Thin Films: High Efficiency as a Result of an Indirect Electronic Band Gap?

Abstract: For inorganic semiconductors crystalline order leads to a band structure which gives rise to drastic differences to the disordered material. An example is the presence of an indirect band gap. For organic semiconductors such effects are typically not considered, since the bands are normally flat, and the band-gap therefore is direct. Herein we show results from electronic structure calculations demonstrating that ordered arrays of porphyrins reveal a small dispersion of occupied and unoccupied bands leading to the formation of a small indirect band gap. We demonstrate herein that such ordered structures can be fabricated by liquid-phase epitaxy and that the corresponding crystalline organic semiconductors exhibit superior photophysical properties, including large charge-carrier mobility and an unusually large charge-carrier generation efficiency. We have fabricated a prototype organic photovoltaic device based on this novel material exhibiting a remarkable efficiency.

Epitaxial growth of phase-pure ε-Ga2O3 by halide vapor phase epitaxy

Abstract: Epitaxial growth of e-Ga2O3 is demonstrated for the first time. The e-Ga2O3 films are grown on GaN (0001), AlN (0001), and β-Ga2O3 ( 2¯01) by halide vapor phase epitaxy at 550 °C using gallium chloride and O2 as precursors. X-ray ω-2θ and pole figure measurements prove that phase-pure e-Ga2O3 (0001) films are epitaxially grown on the three kinds of substrates, although some minor misoriented domains are observed. High temperature X-ray diffraction measurements reveal that the e-Ga2O3 is thermally stable up to approximately 700 °C. The optical bandgap of e-Ga2O3 is determined for the first time to be 4.9 eV.

Hexagonal silicon realized

Abstract: Silicon, arguably the most important technological semiconductor, is predicted to exhibit a range of new and interesting properties when grown in the hexagonal crystal structure. To obtain pure hexagonal silicon is a great challenge because it naturally crystallizes in the cubic structure. Here, we demonstrate the fabrication of pure and stable hexagonal silicon evidenced by structural characterization. In our approach, we transfer the hexagonal crystal structure from a template hexagonal gallium phosphide nanowire to an epitaxially grown silicon shell, such that hexagonal silicon is formed. The typical ABABAB... stacking of the hexagonal structure is shown by aberration-corrected imaging in transmission electron microscopy. In addition, X-ray diffraction measurements show the high crystalline purity of the material. We show that this material is stable up to 9 GPa pressure. With this development, we open the way for exploring its optical, electrical, superconducting, and mechanical properties.

Halide vapor phase epitaxy of twin-free α-Ga2O3on sapphire (0001) substrates

Abstract: The halide vapor phase epitaxy of α-Ga2O3 is demonstrated for the first time. The films are twin-free and heteroepitaxially grown on sapphire (0001) substrates using gallium chloride and oxygen as precursors. X-ray ω–2θ and pole figure measurements reveal that the film is single-crystalline (0001) α-Ga2O3 with no detectable formation of β-Ga2O3. The optical bandgap is determined to be 5.16 eV based on the transmittance spectrum. The growth rate monotonically increases with the partial pressures of the raw material gases, reaching approximately 150 µm/h, which is over two orders of magnitude larger than those of conventional vapor phase epitaxial growth techniques, such as mist CVD or MBE.

Van der Waals Epitaxy of Two-Dimensional MoS2–Graphene Heterostructures in Ultrahigh Vacuum

Abstract: In this work, we demonstrate direct van der Waals epitaxy of MoS2–graphene heterostructures on a semiconducting silicon carbide (SiC) substrate under ultrahigh vacuum conditions. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) measurements show that the electronic structure of free-standing single-layer (SL) MoS2 is retained in these heterostructures due to the weak van der Waals interaction between adjacent materials. The MoS2 synthesis is based on a reactive physical vapor deposition technique involving Mo evaporation and sulfurization in a H2S atmosphere on a template consisting of epitaxially grown graphene on SiC. Using scanning tunneling microscopy, we study the seeding of Mo on this substrate and the evolution from nanoscale MoS2 islands to SL and bilayer (BL) MoS2 sheets during H2S exposure. Our ARPES measurements of SL and BL MoS2 on graphene reveal the coexistence of the Dirac states of graphene and the expected valence band of MoS2 with the band maximum shifted to the corner of the Brillouin ...

Growing antiphase-domain-free GaAs thin films out of highly ordered planar nanowire arrays on exact (001) silicon

Abstract: We report the use of highly ordered, dense, and regular arrays of in-plane GaAs nanowires as building blocks to produce antiphase-domain-free GaAs thin films on exact (001) silicon. High quality GaAs nanowires were grown on V-grooved Si (001) substrates using the selective aspect ratio trapping concept. The 4.1% lattice mismatch has been accommodated by the initial GaAs, a few nanometer-thick with high density stacking faults. The bulk of the GaAs wires exhibited smooth facets and a low defect density. An unusual defect trapping mechanism by a “tiara”-like structure formed by Si undercuts was discovered. As a result, we were able to grow large-area antiphase-domain-free GaAs thin films out of the nanowires without using SiO2 sidewalls for defect termination. Analysis from XRD ω-rocking curves yielded full-width-at-half-maximum values of 238 and 154 arc sec from 900 to 2000 nm GaAs thin films, respectively, indicating high crystalline quality. The growth scheme in this work offers a promising path towards ...

Direct Bandgap Group IV Epitaxy on Si for Laser Applications

Abstract: The recent observation of a fundamental direct bandgap for GeSn group IV alloys and the demonstration of low temperature lasing provide new perspectives on the fabrication of Si photonic circuits. This work addresses the progress in GeSn alloy epitaxy aiming at room temperature GeSn lasing. Chemical vapor deposition of direct bandgap GeSn alloys with a high Γ- to L-valley energy separation and large thicknesses for efficient optical mode confinement is presented and discussed. Up to 1 μm thick GeSn layers with Sn contents up to 14 at. % were grown on thick relaxed Ge buffers, using Ge2H6 and SnCl4 precursors. Strong strain relaxation (up to 81%) at 12.5 at. % Sn concentration, translating into an increased separation between Γ- and L-valleys of about 60 meV, have been obtained without crystalline structure degradation, as revealed by Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy/ion channeling and transmission electron microscopy. Room temperature reflectance and photoluminescence measurements were performed to ...

High-quality, large-area MoSe2 and MoSe2/Bi2Se3 heterostructures on AlN(0001)/Si(111) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy.

Abstract: Atomically-thin, inherently 2D semiconductors offer thickness scaling of nanoelectronic devices and excellent response to light for low-power versatile applications. Using small exfoliated flakes, advanced devices and integrated circuits have already been realized, showing great potential to impact nanoelectronics. Here, high-quality single-crystal MoSe2 is grown by molecular beam epitaxy on AlN(0001)/Si(111), showing the potential for scaling up growth to low-cost, large-area substrates for mass production. The MoSe2 layers are epitaxially aligned with the aluminum nitride (AlN) lattice, showing a uniform, smooth surface and interfaces with no reaction or intermixing, and with sufficiently high band offsets. High-quality single-layer MoSe2 is obtained, with a direct gap evidenced by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and further confirmed by Raman and intense room temperature photoluminescence. The successful growth of high-quality MoSe2/Bi2Se3 multilayers on AlN shows promise for novel devices exploiting the non-trivial topological properties of Bi2Se3.

Molecular-beam epitaxy of monolayer and bilayer WSe2: A scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy study and deduction of exciton binding energy

Abstract: Interests in two-dimensional transition-metal dichalcogenides have prompted some recent efforts to grow ultrathin layers of these materials epitaxially using molecular-beam epitaxy. However, growths of monolayer and bilayer WSe2, an important member of the transition-metal dichalcogenides family, by the molecular-beam epitaxy method remain uncharted probably because of the difficulty in generating tungsten fluxes from the elemental source. In this work, we present a scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy study of molecular-beam epitaxy-grown WSe2 monolayer and bilayer, showing atomically flat epifilm with no domain boundary defect. This contrasts epitaxial MoSe2 films grown by the same method, where a dense network of the domain boudaries defects is present. The scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurements of monolayer and bilayer WSe2 domains of the same sample reveal not only the bandgap narrowing upon increasing the film thickness from monolayer to bilayer, but also a band-bending effect across the boundary between monolayer and bilayer domains. This band-bending appears to be dictated by the edge states at steps of the bilayer islands. Finally, comparison is made between the scanning tunneling spectroscopy-measured electronic bandgaps with the exciton emission energies measured by photoluminescence, and the exciton binding energies in monolayer and bilayer WSe2/MoSe2 are thus estimated.

Comprehensive structural and optical characterization of MBE grown MoSe2 on graphite, CaF2 and graphene

Abstract: We report the structural and optical properties of a molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) grown 2-dimensional (2D) material molybdenum diselenide (MoSe2) on graphite, CaF2 and epitaxial graphene. Extensive characterizations reveal that 2H–MoSe2 grows by van-der-Waals epitaxy on all three substrates with a preferred crystallographic orientation and a Mo:Se ratio of 1:2. Photoluminescence at room temperature (~1.56 eV) is observed in monolayer MoSe2 on both CaF2 and epitaxial graphene. The band edge absorption is very sharp, <60 meV over three decades. Overcoming the observed small grains by promoting mobility of Mo adatoms would make MBE a powerful technique to achieve high quality 2D materials and heterostructures.

Two-dimensional semiconductor HfSe2 and MoSe2/HfSe2 van der Waals heterostructures by molecular beam epitaxy

Abstract: Using molecular beam epitaxy, atomically thin 2D semiconductor HfSe2 and MoSe2/HfSe2 van der Waals heterostructures are grown on AlN(0001)/Si(111) substrates. Details of the electronic band structure of HfSe2 are imaged by in-situ angle resolved photoelectron spectroscopy indicating a high quality epitaxial layer. High-resolution surface tunneling microscopy supported by first principles calculations provides evidence of an ordered Se adlayer, which may be responsible for a reduction of the measured workfunction of HfSe2 compared to theoretical predictions. The latter reduction minimizes the workfunction difference between the HfSe2 and MoSe2 layers resulting in a small valence band offset of only 0.13 eV at the MoSe2/HfSe2 heterointerface and a weak type II band alignment.

Homo- and heteroepitaxial growth of Sn-doped β-Ga2O3 layers by MOVPE

Abstract: Layers of β-Ga2O3in situ doped with Sn were grown on Al2O3 (0001) and native β-Ga2O3 (100) substrates by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy. Homoepitaxial growth of good-quality Sn-doped β-Ga2O3 layers with rocking curve values comparable to that of Czochralski-grown β-Ga2O3 substrates was attained. Sn incorporation in a wide range of concentrations (from 1017 to 1019 cm−3) was achieved without disturbing the crystallinity of the material grown. The interplay between deposition conditions and structural and electrical properties of the layers was studied. The Ga vacancy-related defects and the residual carbon from Ga-containing organic precursor carbon-related complexes have been revealed as acceptors compensating for intentionally introduced Sn donors. The advantage of employment of the melt-grown β-Ga2O3 crystals as homo-substrates for deposition of good-quality β-Ga2O3 layers is demonstrated. For the first time, n-type homoepitaxial semiconducting β-Ga2O3 layers were attained by MOVPE. The good quality of the epilayers was elucidated through HR-XRD measurements and a FWHM of the rocking curve of the (100) peak of 43 arcsec was obtained, which was comparable to those of the Czochralski-grown β-Ga2O3 substrates, demonstrating similar dislocation densities for epilayers and substrates.

Epitaxial stabilization of pseudomorphic α-Ga2O3on sapphire (0001)

Abstract: Heteroepitaxial Ga2O3 was grown on c-plane sapphire by molecular beam epitaxy, pulsed-laser deposition, and metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. Investigation by scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) revealed the presence of a three-monolayer-thick pseudomorphically grown layer of trigonal α-Ga2O3 at the interface between the c-plane sapphire substrate and the β-Ga2O3 independent of the growth method. On top of this pseudomorphically grown layer, plastically relaxed monoclinic β-Ga2O3 grew in the form of rotational domains. We rationalize the stable growth of the high-pressure trigonal α-phase of Ga2O3 in terms of the stabilization of the α-Ga2O3 phase by the lattice-mismatch-induced strain.

Methods of forming silicon germanium tin films and structures and devices including the films

Abstract: Methods of forming silicon germanium tin (Si x Ge 1-x Sn y ) films are disclosed. Exemplary methods include growing films including silicon, germanium and tin in an epitaxial chemical vapor deposition reactor. Exemplary methods are suitable for high volume manufacturing. Also disclosed are structures and devices including silicon germanium tin films.

Atomic-Level Sculpting of Crystalline Oxides: Toward Bulk Nanofabrication with Single Atomic Plane Precision.

Abstract: The atomic-level sculpting of 3D crystalline oxide nanostructures from metastable amorphous films in a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) is demonstrated. Strontium titanate nanostructures grow epitaxially from the crystalline substrate following the beam path. This method can be used for fabricating crystalline structures as small as 1-2 nm and the process can be observed in situ with atomic resolution. The fabrication of arbitrary shape structures via control of the position and scan speed of the electron beam is further demonstrated. Combined with broad availability of the atomic resolved electron microscopy platforms, these observations suggest the feasibility of large scale implementation of bulk atomic-level fabrication as a new enabling tool of nanoscience and technology, providing a bottom-up, atomic-level complement to 3D printing.

Semiconductor–Insulator–Semiconductor Diode Consisting of Monolayer MoS2, h-BN, and GaN Heterostructure

Abstract: We propose a semiconductor–insulator–semiconductor (SIS) heterojunction diode consisting of monolayer (1-L) MoS2, hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), and epitaxial p-GaN that can be applied to high-performance nanoscale optoelectronics. The layered materials of 1-L MoS2 and h-BN, grown by chemical vapor deposition, were vertically stacked by a wet-transfer method on a p-GaN layer. The final structure was verified by confocal photoluminescence and Raman spectroscopy. Current–voltage (I–V) measurements were conducted to compare the device performance with that of a more classical p–n structure. In both structures (the p–n and SIS heterojunction diode), clear current-rectifying characteristics were observed. In particular, a current and threshold voltage were obtained for the SIS structure that was higher compared to that of the p–n structure. This indicated that tunneling is the predominant carrier transport mechanism. In addition, the photoresponse of the SIS structure induced by the illumination of visible li...

Etching‐Free Epitaxial Growth of Gold on Silver Nanostructures for High Chemical Stability and Plasmonic Activity

Abstract: A robust method for epitaxial deposition of Au onto the surface of Ag nanostructures is demonstrated, which allows effective conversion of Ag nano­structures of various morphologies into Ag@Au counterparts, with the anisotropic ones showing excellent plasmonic properties comparable to the original Ag nanostructures while significantly enhanced stability. Sulfite plays a determining role in the success of this epitaxial deposition as it strongly complexes with gold cations to completely prevent galvanic replacement while it also remains benign to the Ag surface to avoid any ligand-assisted oxidative etching. By using Ag nanoplates as an example, it is shown that the corresponding Ag@Au nanoplates possess remarkable plasmonic properties that are virtually Ag-like, in clear contrast to Ag@Au nanospheres that exhibit much lower plasmonic activities than their Ag counterparts. As a result, they display high durability and activities in surface-enhanced Raman scattering applications. This strategy may represent a general platform for depositing a noble metal on less stable metal nanostructures, thus opening up new opportunities in rational design of functional metal nanomaterials for a broad range of applications.

The competing oxide and sub-oxide formation in metal-oxide molecular beam epitaxy

Abstract: The hetero-epitaxial growth of the n-type semiconducting oxides β-Ga2O3, In2O3, and SnO2 on c- and r-plane sapphire was performed by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. The growth-rate and desorbing flux from the substrate were measured in-situ under various oxygen to metal ratios by laser reflectometry and quadrupole mass spectrometry, respectively. These measurements clarified the role of volatile sub-oxide formation (Ga2O, In2O, and SnO) during growth, the sub-oxide stoichiometry, and the efficiency of oxide formation for the three oxides. As a result, the formation of the sub-oxides decreased the growth-rate under metal-rich growth conditions and resulted in etching of the oxide film by supplying only metal flux. The flux ratio for the exclusive formation of the sub-oxide (e.g., the p-type semiconductor SnO) was determined, and the efficiency of oxide formation was found to be the highest for SnO2, somewhat lower for In2O3, and the lowest for Ga2O3. Our findings can be generalized to further oxides that possess related sub-oxides.

Epitaxial Growth of GaN Nanowires with High Structural Perfection on a Metallic TiN Film.

Abstract: Vertical GaN nanowires are grown in a self-induced way on a sputtered Ti film by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. Both in situ electron diffraction and ex situ ellipsometry show that Ti is converted to TiN upon exposure of the surface to the N plasma. In addition, the ellipsometric data demonstrate this TiN film to be metallic. The diffraction data evidence that the GaN nanowires have a strict epitaxial relationship to this film. Photoluminescence spectroscopy of the GaN nanowires shows excitonic transitions virtually identical in spectral position, line width, and decay time to those of state-of-the-art GaN nanowires grown on Si. Therefore, the crystalline quality of the GaN nanowires grown on metallic TiN and on Si is equivalent. The freedom to employ metallic substrates for the epitaxial growth of semiconductor nanowires in high structural quality may enable novel applications that benefit from the associated high thermal and electrical conductivity as well as optical reflectivity.

Synthesis of atomically thin hexagonal boron nitride films on nickel foils by molecular beam epitaxy

Abstract: Hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) is a layered two-dimensional material with properties that make it promising as a dielectric in various applications. We report the growth of h-BN films on Ni foils from elemental B and N using molecular beam epitaxy. The presence of crystalline h-BN over the entire substrate is confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. Atomic force microscopy is used to examine the morphology and continuity of the synthesized films. A scanning electron microscopy study of films obtained using shorter depositions offers insight into the nucleation and growth behavior of h-BN on the Ni substrate. The morphology of h-BN was found to evolve from dendritic, star-shaped islands to larger, smooth triangular ones with increasing growth temperature.