Influence of antimony on the morphology and properties of an array of Ge/Si(100) quantum dots

• DOI: 10.1134/1.1853445
• Publication Date: 2005-02-17T19:47:54Z
• Authors: G. E. Cirlin; A. A. Tonkikh; V. E. Ptitsyn; V. G. Dubrovskii; S. A. Masalov; V. P. Evtikhiev; D. V. Denisov; V. M. Ustinov; P. Werner
• Keywords: 02 engineering and technology; 0210 nano-technology

The morphological features of the quantum-dot formation in the (Ge,Sb)/Si system during molecular-beam epitaxy are studied using reflection high-energy electron diffraction and atomic-force microscopy. It is found that islands obtained by simultaneous sputtering of Ge and Sb have a higher density and are more homogeneous than in the case of sputtering of pure Ge. The regularities in the island formation are discussed in terms of the theory of island formation in systems with lattice mismatch. The field-emission properties of the grown structures are studied using a scanning electron microscope. The reduced brightness of (Ge,Sb)/Si nanostructures is estimated to be B ∼ 105 A/(cm2 sr V), which is an order of magnitude higher than the brightness of Schottky cathodes.