The Morphology and Misfit Dislocation Formation Characteristics of Strained Heteroepitaxial Layers: Ex Situ and In Situ Growth Studies

Authors

A. G. Cullis, Defence Research Agency MalvernFollow

Abstract

Under certain regimes of heteroepitaxial layer growth, misfit stresses can lead to very significant distortions in interface morphology, which can influence strain relief and subsequent misfit dislocation introduction. These phenomena have been clearly demonstrated in the case of SiGe/Si heteroepitaxy and the way in which surface SiGe growth ripples are accompanied by strain waves has been established. The ripples provide partial elastic relief of the layer misfit stress in a manner which has been correlated with theoretical expectations. The local stress variations ultimately may influence the formation and disposition of misfit dislocations in the strained layer structures. The present paper reviews primarily our understanding of these growth characteristics. It also outlines current in situ synchrotron growth studies which exploit real-time X-ray topography and diffraction to probe heteroepitaxial strain-relief processes.

Recommended Citation

Cullis, A. G. (1994) "The Morphology and Misfit Dislocation Formation Characteristics of Strained Heteroepitaxial Layers: Ex Situ and In Situ Growth Studies," Scanning Microscopy: Vol. 8: No. 4, Article 22.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/microscopy/vol8/iss4/22