Heteroepitaxy of AIIIBV films on vicinal Si(001) substrates

GaAs films on Si substrates miscut from the (001) plane by 6° in the [110] direction are grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). GaAs films are grown both on the Si surface terminated by arsenic atoms and on thin pseudomorphic GaP/Si layers. The condition of formation of the As sublayer and the first monolayer of GaP on the Si surface is defined as the GaAs film orientation (001) or \((00\bar 1)\). The processes of Si surface preparation and formation of the As sublayer and GaAs and GaP epitaxial layers are monitored by means of high-energy electron diffraction reflection (RHEED). The grown structures are investigated by methods of X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy (ATM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and low-temperature luminescences. It is shown that the epitaxial film orientation affects both the surface morphology and its crystalline properties. Intense photoluminescence is obtained from the In0.17Ga0.83As quantum well structure grown on the GaAs/Si buffer layer.