The Role of an Interface Misfit Dislocation in Blocking the Glide of a Threading Dislocation in a Strained Epitaxial Layer

1989 ◽  
Vol 160 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. B. Freund ◽  
J. C. Ramirez ◽  
A. F. Bower
Keyword(s):  
Epitaxial Layer ◽  
Misfit Dislocation ◽  
Driving Force ◽  
Threading Dislocation ◽  
Misfit Dislocations ◽  
Dislocation Theory ◽  
Strained Layer

AbstractThe glide of a threading dislocation in a strained layer may be impeded as it encounters interface misfit dislocations on intersecting glide planes. An estimate of the change in driving force on the threading dislocation during this interaction is discussed within the framework of elastic dislocation theory.

The Role of Misfit Dislocation During Epitaxial Growth

1987 ◽  
Vol 94 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Cherns
Keyword(s):  
Misfit Dislocation ◽  
Lattice Spacing ◽  
Minimum Energy ◽  
Energy Criterion ◽  
Misfit Dislocations ◽  
Metal Metal ◽  
Correct Account ◽  
Pseudomorphic Growth ◽  
Dislocation Sources

ABSTRACTThe theory of Frank and van der Merwe (FM) in 1949 showed that a minimum energy criterion could explain the pseudomorphic growth of a deposit on a substrate of different lattice spacing and the subsequent relief of strain by misfit dislocations as the deposit thickness increases. Although the “equilibrium” theory is qualitatively correct, account must be taken of actual dislocation sources, which may be complex, and which may be more or less efficient for misfit relief than predicted by the FM model. Moreover, misfit dislocation sources may determine the morphology of the growing film, the interface topology and even the atomic structure of the deposit/substrate interface. These various roles of misfit dislocations are reviewed here with examples from work on metal/metal, semiconductor/semiconductor and metal/semiconductor systems.

Tm Analysis of Interfaces Beiween Nb and Al2O3 Precipitates

1986 ◽  
Vol 82 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Mader
Keyword(s):  
Misfit Dislocation ◽  
Diffraction Gratings ◽  
Al Alloy ◽  
Misfit Dislocations ◽  
Dislocation Theory ◽  
Coherent Interface ◽  
Periodic Arrays ◽  
Partially Coherent ◽  
Dislocation Arrangement

ABSTRACTA Nb—Al alloy has been internally oxidized to produce A12O3precipitates. The interface between plate—like AI2O3 precipitates and the Nb matrix has been investigated by diffraction, CTEM, and HREM techniques. Periodic arrays of misfit dislocations were observed which acted as diffraction gratings for the electrons. The location of misfit dislocation cores could be determined from HREM images within an accuracy of a few lattice spacings. It can be concluded that the misfit dislocations lead to a good matching of atomic rows across the interface. The dislocation arrangement at this partially coherent interface is in accordance with theoretical expectations from dislocation theory.

A Multiplication Mechanism for Misfit Dislocations

1992 ◽  
Vol 263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A. Capano
Keyword(s):  
Dislocation Loop ◽  
Misfit Dislocation ◽  
Epitaxial Layers ◽  
Threading Dislocation ◽  
Misfit Dislocations ◽  
Sequential Process ◽  
Single Dislocation ◽  
Dislocation Arrays ◽  
Half Loop ◽  
Dislocation Sources

ABSTRACTA new mechanism which describes how misfit dislocations in epitaxial layers multiply is presented. This work demonstrates how a single threading dislocation can give rise to an array of dislocation sources, where each source generates a single dislocation loop perpendicular to the primary misfit dislocation. As a threading dislocation with pure screw character glides through an epilayer, certain processes occur which lead to the production of a single dislocation half-loop, and the regeneration of the original threading dislocation. The regenerated threading dislocation continues to propagate on its primary glide plane, which allows the process to repeat itself at some later time. The result of this sequential process is an array of half-loops perpendicular to the primary misfit dislocation. The shape and symmetry of the arrays also contains information regarding how the mechanism operates. The proposed mechanism is related to misfit dislocation arrays in a single Si0.87Ge0.13 layer on Si(001).

In Situ Observations of Misfit Dislocations in Lattice-Mismatched Epitaxial Semiconductor Heterostructures

MRS Bulletin ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 19 (6) ◽  
pp. 32-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Hull ◽  
John Bean
Keyword(s):  
Epitaxial Layer ◽  
Strain Energy ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Elastic Strain Energy ◽  
Lattice Parameter ◽  
Semiconductor Heterostructures ◽  
Dislocation Network ◽  
Misfit Dislocations ◽  
Strained Layer

This article describes the application of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to real-time, in situ dynamic observations of dislocations in strained epitaxial semiconductor heterostructures. Such experiments allow us to directly observe the formation, motion, and interaction of mis-fit dislocations. Preliminary extension of this work to the in situ measurement of the electrical properties of misfit dislocations will also be described.The Fundamental Scientific IssueIt is well established that it is possible to grow a thin, coherent epitaxial layer on a substrate with a slightly different lattice parameter, as illustrated in Figure la. This concept is known as strained layer epitaxy. In the fields of semiconductor physics and device design, strained layer epitaxy offers many exciting new opportunities (see Reference 1 for a review). A coherently strained structure, however, will store an enormous elastic strain energy density in the epitaxial layer, due to the distortion of interatomic bonds. Therefore, as the epitaxial layer increases in thickness during growth, it will become increasingly energetically favorable to relax this strain energy. A number of relaxation routes exist: (1) roughening of the epitaxial layer surface (see, for example, Reference 2); (2) interdiffusion of the layers (this will generally only be significant at temperatures which are a large fraction of the layer melting temperatures (e.g., Reference 3)); and (3) introduction of a dislocation network into the substrate/epilayer interface, which as shown schematically in Figure lb, will allow the epitaxial layer to relax toward its bulk lattice parameter. This dislocation mechanism is the most prevalent strain relaxation mechanism at typical crystal growth and processing temperatures, and we concentrate on this mechanism in our experimental studies.

Interaction Length for Dislocations in Compositionally-Graded Heterostructures

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (03n04) ◽  
pp. 1840022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Minglei Cai ◽  
Tedi Kujofsa ◽  
Xinkang Chen ◽  
Md Tanvirul Islam ◽  
John E. Ayers
Keyword(s):  
Misfit Dislocation ◽  
Practical Importance ◽  
Threading Dislocation ◽  
Threading Dislocations ◽  
Misfit Dislocations ◽  
Multilayered Structures ◽  
Interaction Length ◽  
Dislocation Interaction ◽  
First Case ◽  
Future Work

Several simple models have been developed for the threading dislocation behavior in heteroepitaxial semiconductor materials. Tachikawa and Yamaguchi [Appl. Phys. Lett., 56, 484 (1990)] and Romanov et al. [Appl. Phys. Lett., 69, 3342 (1996)] described models for the annihilation and coalescence of threading dislocations in uniform-composition layers, and Kujofsa et al. [J. Electron. Mater., 41, 2993 (2013)] extended the annihilation and coalescence model to compositionally-graded and multilayered structures by including the misfit dislocation-threading dislocation interactions. However, an important limitation of these previous models is that they involve empirical parameters. The goal of this work is to develop a predictive model for annihilation and coalescence of threading dislocations which is based on the dislocation interaction length Lint. In the first case if only in-plane glide is considered the interaction length is equal to the length of misfit dislocation segments while in the second case glide and climb are considered and the interaction length is a function of the distance from the interface, the length of misfit dislocations, and the density of the misfit dislocations. In either case the interaction length may be calculated using a model for dislocation flow. Knowledge of the dislocation interaction length allows predictive calculations of the threading dislocation densities in metamorphic device structures and is of great practical importance. Here we demonstrate the latter model based on glide and climb. Future work should compare the two models to determine which is more relevant to typical device heterostructures.

Electron Microscopy Investigation of the Role of Surface Steps in the Generation of Dislocations during MOCVD Growth of GaN on 4H-SiC

2006 ◽  
Vol 527-529 ◽  
pp. 1509-1512 ◽  
Author(s):  
N.D. Bassim ◽  
Mark E. Twigg ◽  
Michael A. Mastro ◽  
Philip G. Neudeck ◽  
Charles R. Eddy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Substrate Surface ◽  
Atomic Scale ◽  
Threading Dislocation ◽  
Threading Dislocations ◽  
Misfit Dislocations ◽  
Nucleation Layer ◽  
Plan View ◽  
Surface Steps

Through the use of specially-prepared on-axis SiC substrates with patterned mesa tops completely free of atomic-scale surface steps, we have previously reported the growth of highquality GaN heteroepitaxial films with greatly reduced threading dislocation densities on the order of 107/cm2. In these films, we reported a defect substructure in which lateral a-type dislocations are present in the nucleation layer but do not bow into threading dislocations during the subsequent GaN growth. This study focuses further on the role of SiC substrate surface steps in the generation of misfit, a-type, and threading dislocations at the heteroepitaxial interface. By using weak-beam imaging (both to eliminate Moiré effects and to observe narrow dislocation images) from plan-view transmission electron microscopy (TEM), we identify dislocations generated on stepped and unstepped mesas and compare their geometries. We observe that misfit dislocations nucleated on an unstepped SiC mesa are confined to one set of a-type Burgers vectors of the form g=1/3 [2110] _ _ , straight and well-ordered so that they are less likely to interact with each other. On the other hand, misfit dislocation structures on a stepped SiC mesa surface are not nearly as well-ordered, having bowed structure with threading dislocations that appear to nucleate at SiC surface steps.

Propagation of Dislocations Through GeSi/Si Strained Layers and Superlattices

1988 ◽  
Vol 116 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Hull ◽  
J.C. Bean ◽  
R.E. Leibenguth
Keyword(s):  
Single Layer ◽  
Dislocation Nucleation ◽  
Threading Dislocation ◽  
Misfit Dislocations ◽  
Strained Layers ◽  
Activation Barriers ◽  
Strained Layer ◽  
Growth Activation ◽  
Si Epitaxy ◽  
Strained Layer Superlattices

AbstractWe describe in-situ transmission electron microscope observations of the relaxation of strained layer GeSi/Si epitaxy. Dynamic observations of misfit dislocations in these structures reveal that dislocation nucleation and growth activation barriers, as well as interactions, limit the rate at which strain is relieved. The equivalence of threading and misfit dislocations in this system is demonstrated. Extension of the principles learnt from these single layer experiments to threading dislocation propagation through multilayer structures, enables us to understand the relative inefficiency of GeSi/Si strained layer superlattices in blocking threading dislocations.

Mechanisms and Kinetics of Misfit Dislocation Formation in Heteroepitaxial Thin Films

1990 ◽  
Vol 188 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. D. Nix ◽  
D. B. Noble ◽  
J. F. Turlo
Keyword(s):  
Misfit Dislocation ◽  
Strain Relaxation ◽  
Dislocation Motion ◽  
Dislocation Nucleation ◽  
Dislocation Segment ◽  
Threading Dislocation ◽  
Misfit Dislocations ◽  
Film Substrate ◽  
Kinetics Of ◽  
Dislocation Formation

ABSTRACTThe mechanisms and kinetics of forming misfit dislocations in heteroepitaxial films are studied. The critical thickness for misfit dislocation formation can be found by considering the incremental extension of a misfit dislocation by the movement of a “threading” dislocation segment that extends from the film/substrate interface to the free surface of the film. This same mechanism allows one to examine the kinetics of dislocation motion and to illuminate the importance of dislocation nucleation and multiplication in strain relaxation. The effects of unstrained epitaxial capping layers on these processes are also considered. The major effects of such capping layers are to inhibit dislocation nucleation and multiplication. The effect of the capping layer on the velocity of the “threading” dislocation is shown to be small by comparison.A new substrate curvature technique for measuring the strain and studying the kinetics of strain relaxation in heteroepitaxial films is also briefly described.

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