GaAs thin film growth via liquid phase epitaxy

Abstract

The development of Liquid Phase Epitaxy (LPE) has ensured the important role of solution growth in semiconductor device technology. High quality epilayers are possible with LPE with a minimum of capital investment when compared with alternative methods such Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) and the Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition (MOCVD) method. Hence, it has become a viable option for the deposition of III-V semiconductors, particularly GaAs- and lnP-based optoelectronic devices employing double heterojunction structures.
Significant advances have already been made in the homoepitaxy of GaAs using the LPE method. However, the optimum growth parameters vary from one LPE system to another. It is therefore necessary to appraise the system by growing bulk GaAs films before venturing into more complicated heterostructures.
This paper presents the results of our initial attempts to grow quality GaAs films using the Epigress LPE machine in the Condensed Matter Physics Laboratory of the National Institute of Physics.