Probing the growth quality of molecular beam epitaxy-grown Bi2Se3 films via in-situ spectroscopic ellipsometry

Multilayer heterostructures of the topological insulator Bi2Se3 and conventional semiconductor In2Se3, as well as solid solution layers of (Bi1-xInx)(2)Se-3 layers were grown by molecular beam epitaxy and analyzed in-operando using spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE). SE spectra were obtained after the deposition of each layer to deter-mine the respective dielectric functions and thicknesses of each layer. In contrast to ex-situ SE, where uncertainty in the dielectric function and thicknesses of individual layer impose limitations to extract a correct model for the dielectric function of such multilayer heterostructures from a single set of SE data, the step-by-step in-situ SE data recover more precise dielectric functions for Bi2Se3, In2Se3, (Bi0.7In (0.3))(2)Se-3 and the cap-layer. The optical models developed for multilayer structures can decipher minute perturbations in layers as the growth progresses. Our models show that a ~ 7 nm Bi2Se3 layer grown next to a sapphire substrate seems to disappear as the structure is annealed at 600 C. Finally, when the dielectric functions were represented as a collection of Kramers-Kronig-consistent oscillators, in-situ SE predicted the quality of films; the weighted-average broadening parameter for oscillators used for Bi2Se3 films grown on (Bi0.7In (0.3))(2)Se-3 layer is-20% smaller compared to Bi2Se3 films directly grown on sapphire, confirming that the former film is of better quality, and providing a direct metric to quantify film quality and defect concentration. These conclusions were corroborated by transport data.

Automated summary

In-situ spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) analysis provides more precise dielectric functions and thicknesses of multilayer heterostructures, allowing for detection of subtle changes during growth processes.