Photoluminescence Studies of Si-Doped Epitaxial GaAs Films Grown on (100)- and (111)A-Oriented GaAs Substrates at Lowered Temperatures

Abstract

The electrical properties and photoluminescence features of uniformly Si-doped GaAs layers grown on GaAs substrates with the (100) and (111)A crystallographic orientations of the surface are studied. The samples are grown at the same As₄ pressure in the growth temperature range from 350 to 510°C. The samples grown on GaAs(100) substrates possess n-type conductivity in the entire growth temperature range, and the samples grown on GaAs(111)A substrates possess p-type conductivity in the growth temperature range from 430 to 510°C. The photoluminescence spectra of the samples exhibit an edge band and an impurity band. The edge photoluminescence band corresponds to the photoluminescence of degenerate GaAs with n- and p-type conductivity. The impurity photoluminescence band for samples on GaAs(100) substrates in the range 1.30–1.45 eV is attributed to V_As defects and Si_As–V_As defect complexes, whose concentration varies with sample growth temperature. Transformation of the impurity photoluminescence spectra of the samples on GaAs(111)A substrates is interpreted as being a result of changes in the V_As and V_Ga defect concentrations under variations in the growth temperature of the samples.