Strain relaxation by pitting in AlN thin films deposited by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

Strain relaxation mechanisms were investigated in epitaxial AlN layers deposited on (0001)-oriented AlN substrates by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. It was revealed that epitaxial AlN layers under tensile strain can exhibit micro-cracks and nano-pits. A correlation existed between the amoun...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied physics letters 2013-02, Vol.102 (6)
Main Authors: Bryan, I, Rice, A, Hussey, L, Bryan, Z, Bobea, M, Mita, S, Xie, J, Kirste, R, Collazo, R, Sitar, Z
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aluminum nitride
Deposition
Metalorganic chemical vapor deposition
Nanocomposites
Nanomaterials
Nanostructure
Strain
Strain relaxation
Thin films
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Summary:Strain relaxation mechanisms were investigated in epitaxial AlN layers deposited on (0001)-oriented AlN substrates by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. It was revealed that epitaxial AlN layers under tensile strain can exhibit micro-cracks and nano-pits. A correlation existed between the amount of strain and number of pits in localized areas. Pit densities as high as 1010 cm-2 were observed in areas where the tensile strain reached similar to 0.4%, while unstrained areas of the film showed step flow growth. These nano-pits occurred as a strain relaxation mechanism and were not related to intrinsic defects, such as threading dislocations or inversion domains.
ISSN:0003-6951
1077-3118
DOI:10.1063/1.4792694