Heteroepitaxial growth of InAs on GaAs(001) by in situ STM located inside MBE growth chamber

The growth of InAs on GaAs(001) is of great interest primarily due to the self-assembly of arrays of quantum dots (QDs) with excellent opto-electronic properties. However, a basic understanding of their spontaneous formation is lacking. Advanced experimental methods are required to probe these nanostructures dynamically in order to elucidate their growth mechanism. Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) has been successfully applied to many GaAs-based materials grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). Typical STM-MBE experiments involve quenching the sample and transferring it to a remote STM chamber under arsenic-free ultra-high vacuum. In the case of GaAs-based materials grown at substrate temperatures of 400-600^oC, operating the STM at room temperature ensures that the surface is essentially static on the time scale of STM imaging. To attempt dynamic experiments requires a system in which STM and MBE are incorporated into one unit in order to scan in situ during growth. Here, we discuss in situ STM results from just such a system, covering both QDs and the dynamics of the wetting layer.

[1]  A. Ishii,et al.  Dynamics of In atom during InAs/GaAs(0 0 1) growth process , 2003 .

[2]  K. Jacobi,et al.  A compact ultrahigh-vacuum system for the in situ investigation of III/V semiconductor surfaces , 2000 .

[3]  T. Jones,et al.  SPECIES INTERMIXING AND PHASE TRANSITIONS ON THE RECONSTRUCTED (001) SURFACES OF GAAS AND INAS , 1999 .

[4]  M. Johnson,et al.  A COMBINED MOLECULAR-BEAM EPITAXY AND SCANNING TUNNELING MICROSCOPY SYSTEM , 1991 .

[5]  T. Jones,et al.  Wetting layer evolution in InAs/GaAs(001) heteroepitaxy: effects of surface reconstruction and strain , 2002 .

[6]  Peter Kratzer,et al.  Understanding the growth mechanisms of GaAs and InGaAs thin films by employing first-principles calculations , 2003 .

[7]  S. Tsukamoto,et al.  Magic numbers in Ga clusters on GaAs (0 0 1) surface , 2000 .

[8]  Dimitri D. Vvedensky,et al.  ISLAND NUCLEATION AND GROWTH ON RECONSTRUCTED GAAS(001) SURFACES , 1998 .

[9]  David T. D. Childs,et al.  Effect of growth rate on the size, composition, and optical properties of InAs/GaAs quantum dots grown by molecular-beam epitaxy , 2000 .

[10]  J. Sudijono,et al.  The As-terminated reconstructions formed by GaAs(001): a scanning tunnelling microscopy study of the (2 × 4) and c(4 × 4) surfaces , 1995 .

[11]  F. Patella,et al.  Tracing the two- to three-dimensional transition in the InAs/GaAs(001) heteroepitaxial growth , 2003 .

[12]  Y. Arakawa,et al.  Atomistic insights for InAs quantum dot formation on GaAs(001) using STM within a MBE growth chamber. , 2006, Small.

[13]  B. A. Joyce,et al.  Composition of InAs quantum dots on GaAs(001): Direct evidence for (In,Ga)As alloying , 1998 .

[14]  Y. Arakawa,et al.  In situ scanning tunneling microscopy of InAs quantum dots on GaAs( 0 0 1 ) during molecular beam epitaxial growth , 2003 .

[15]  J. P. Silveira,et al.  Strain relaxation and segregation effects during self-assembled InAs quantum dots formation on GaAs(001) , 2000 .

[16]  S. Tsukamoto,et al.  Atomic-level in situ real-space observation of Ga adatoms on GaAs(0 0 1)(2×4)-As surface during molecular beam epitaxy growth , 1999 .

[17]  Haeyeon Yang,et al.  Role of As4 in Ga diffusion on the GaAs(001)-(2×4) surface: A molecular beam epitaxy-scanning tunneling microscopy study , 1999 .

[18]  T. Jones,et al.  Understanding the growth mode transition in InAs/GaAs(0 0 1) quantum dot formation , 2003 .

[19]  B. A. Joyce,et al.  Surface alloying at InAsGaAs interfaces grown on (001) surfaces by molecular beam epitaxy , 1997 .

[20]  Peter Kratzer,et al.  Atomic Structure of the GaAs\(001\)-\(2×4\) Surface Resolved Using Scanning Tunneling Microscopy and First-Principles Theory , 1999 .