Reflection Absorption Infrared Spectroscopy Study on the Spontaneous Formation of Erbium Monoantimonide Nanoparticles on Indium Antimonide Surfaces

2011 
We describe an ex-situ monitoring technique for a small amount (~30 mono-layers) of erbium monoantimonide (ErSb) deposited on an indium antimonide (InSb) epitaxial layer prepared on InSb(100) substrates by metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). Our objective is to improve thermoelectric properties of nanocomposites that employ nanometer size semi-metallic ErSb particles (ErSb nanoparticles) embedded in ternary group III-V compound semiconductor host materials such as indium gallium antimonide (InGaSb) and indium antimonide arsenide (InSbAs). The formation of ErSb nanoparticles embedded in a host material is spontaneous and needs to be carefully controlled to tune the size and volume density of the ErSb nanoparticles. We used an ex-situ monitoring technique based on glancing-angle infrared-absorption, reflection absorption infra-red spectroscopy (RAIRS), to study the formation of ErSb nanoparticles to correlate the amount of delivered ErSb and surface morphology of the surface of InSb covered with ErSb.
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