Characterization of antiphase domains on GaAs grown on Ge substrates by conductive atomic force microscopy for photovoltaic applications

The role of antiphase domains formed on GaAs grown on Ge is analyzed by means of conductive atomic force microscopy. The correlation of the derivative topography scans with the conductive scans shows a constant current value in most of the surface under study; although at certain locations high current leaks occur causing an inhomogeneous conductivity through the GaAs layer as the density of antiphase domains increases. This result implies that the existence of antiphase domains decreases the parallel resistance of solar cells, helping to understand the impact of these defects on the electrical behavior of these devices (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.