Sb Surfactant Effect on Defect Evolution in Compressively Strained In0.80Ga0.20As Quantum Well on InP Grown by Metalorganic Vapor Phase Epitaxy

The critical thickness of a 1.85%-strained In0.80Ga0.20As quantum well grown on an InP substrate by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy and using Sb as a surfactant was investigated by using cathodoluminescence analysis at room temperature (RT). The critical thicknesses for samples prepared without and with the use of Sb were found to be approximately 8 and 9 rim, respectively. Although the use of Sb did not increase the critical thickness, it could suppress the number of defects caused by the three-dimensional island growth of the quantum well even beyond the critical thickness. As a result, the thickness of the quantum well, from which the photoluminescence emission was observed at RT, increased from 10 to 15 nm when Sb was used. (C) 2008 The Japan Society of Applied Physics