Selective area oxide desorption by electron irradiation in a H2 ambient on GaAs (100)

The selective area removal of oxides from the surface of exposed GaAs (100) has been achieved by irradiating the sample with a broad, low energy electron beam in a H2 ambient. It is proposed that electrons dissociate the molecular hydrogen to create ionized species which react with the surface. The...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied physics letters 1999-02, Vol.74 (7), p.950-952
Main Authors: Brown, S. J., Burke, T. M., Smith, M. P., Ritchie, D. A., Pepper, M., Tang, K. B. T., Palmer, R. E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The selective area removal of oxides from the surface of exposed GaAs (100) has been achieved by irradiating the sample with a broad, low energy electron beam in a H2 ambient. It is proposed that electrons dissociate the molecular hydrogen to create ionized species which react with the surface. The surfaces of samples decontaminated at 365 °C, up to electron energies of 200 eV, were undamaged as revealed by atomic force microscopy. Moreover, quantum well structures epitaxially grown on these surfaces exhibited luminescence. A possible reaction mechanism responsible for the oxide removal is described.
ISSN:0003-6951
1077-3118
DOI:10.1063/1.123419