Raman spectroscopy of self-catalyzed GaAs(1-x)Sb(x) nanowires grown on silicon

Controlling the morphology and wavelength of self-assembled coaxial GaAs/Ga(As)Sb/GaAs single quantum-well nanowires

Antimonide-based ternary III-V nanowires (NWs) provide a tunable bandgap over a wide range, and the GaAsSb material system has prospective applications in the 1.3-1.55 μm spectral range of optical communications. In this paper, GaAs/Ga(As)Sb/GaAs single quantum well (SQW) NWs were grown on Si(111) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). In addition, the morphologies and tunable wavelengths of the GaAs/Ga(As)Sb/GaAs SQWs were adjusted by interrupting the Ga droplets and changing the growth temperatures and V/III ratios. The four morphologies of the GaAs/Ga(As)Sb/GaAs SQW NWs were observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The microscale lattice structure related to the incorporation of Sb in GaAs/Ga(As)Sb/GaAs SQWs was studied by Raman spectroscopy. The crystal quality of the GaAs/Ga(As)Sb/GaAs SQW NWs was researched by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). In addition, the optical properties of the GaAs/Ga(As)Sb/GaAs SQWs were investigated by photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The PL spectra showed the peak emission wavelength range of ∼818 nm (GaAs) to ∼1628 nm (GaSb) at 10 K. This study provides an approach to enhance the effective control of the morphology, structure and wavelength of quantum well or core-shell NWs.

Ensemble GaAsSb/GaAs axial configured nanowire-based separate absorption, charge, and multiplication avalanche near-infrared photodetectors

In this study, molecular beam epitaxially grown axially configured ensemble GaAsSb/GaAs separate absorption, charge, and multiplication (SACM) region-based nanowire avalanche photodetector device on non-patterned Si substrate is presented. Our device exhibits a low breakdown voltage (V _BR) of ∼ -10 ± 2.5 V under dark, photocurrent gain (M) varying from 20 in linear mode to avalanche gain of 700 at V _BR at a 1.064 μm wavelength. Positive temperature dependence of breakdown voltage ∼ 12.6 mV K^-1 further affirms avalanche breakdown as the gain mechanism in our SACM NW APDs. Capacitance-voltage (C-V) and temperature-dependent noise characteristics also validated punch-through voltage ascertained from I-V measurements, and avalanche being the dominant gain mechanism in the APDs. The ensemble SACM NW APD device demonstrated a broad spectral room temperature response with a cut-off wavelength of ∼1.2 μm with a responsivity of ∼0.17-0.38 A W^-1 at -3 V. This work offers a potential pathway toward realizing tunable nanowire-based avalanche photodetectors compatible with traditional Si technology.

A study of n-doping in self-catalyzed GaAsSb nanowires using GaTe dopant source and ensemble nanowire near-infrared photodetector

This work reports a comprehensive investigation of the effect of gallium telluride (GaTe) cell temperature variation (T_GaTe) on the morphological, optical, and electrical properties of doped-GaAsSb nanowires (NWs) grown by Ga-assisted molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). These studies led to an optimum doping temperature of 550 °C for the growth of tellurium (Te)-doped GaAsSb NWs with the best optoelectronic and structural properties. Te incorporation resulted in a decrease in the aspect ratio of the NWs causing an increase in the Raman longitudinal optical/transverse optical vibrational mode intensity ratio, large photoluminescence emission with an exponential decay tail on the high energy side, promoting tunnel-assisted current conduction in ensemble NWs and significant photocurrent enhancement in the single nanowire. A Schottky barrier photodetector (PD) using Te-doped ensemble NWs with broad spectral range and a longer wavelength cutoff at ∼1.2 µm was demonstrated. These PDs exhibited responsivity in the range of 580-620 A W^-1 and detectivity of 1.2-3.8 × 10¹² Jones. The doped GaAsSb NWs have the potential for further improvement, paving the path for high-performance near-infrared (NIR) photodetection applications.

The role of As species in self-catalyzed growth of GaAs and GaAsSb nanowires

Precise control and broad tunability of the growth parameters are essential in engineering the optical and electrical properties of semiconductor nanowires (NWs) to make them suitable for practical applications. To this end, we report the effect of As species, namely As₂ and As₄, on the growth of self-catalyzed GaAs based NWs. The role of As species is further studied in the presence of Te as n-type dopant in GaAs NWs and Sb as an additional group V element to form GaAsSb NWs. Using As₄ enhances the growth of NWs in the axial direction over a wide range of growth parameters and diminishes the tendency of Te and Sb to reduce the NW aspect ratio. By extending the axial growth parameter window, As₄ allows growth of GaAsSb NWs with up to 47% in Sb composition. On the other hand, As₂ favors sidewall growth which enhances the growth in the radial direction. Thus, the selection of As species is critical for tuning not only the NW dimensions, but also the incorporation mechanisms of dopants and ternary elements. Moreover, the commonly observed dependence of twinning on Te and Sb remains unaffected by the As species. By exploiting the extended growth window associated with the use of As_4, enhanced Sb incorporation and optical emission up to 1400 nm wavelength range is demonstrated. This wavelength corresponds to the telecom E-band, which opens new prospects for this NW material system in future telecom applications while simultaneously enabling their integration to the silicon photonics platform.

Recent Progress on the Gold-Free Integration of Ternary III-As Antimonide Nanowires Directly on Silicon

During the last few years, there has been renewed interest in the monolithic integration of gold-free, Ternary III–As Antimonide (III–As–Sb) compound semiconductor materials on complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS)—compatible silicon substrate to exploit its scalability, and relative abundance in high-performance and cost-effective integrated circuits based on the well-established technology. Ternary III–As–Sb nanowires (NWs) hold enormous promise for the fabrication of high-performance optoelectronic nanodevices with tunable bandgap. However, the direct epitaxial growth of gold-free ternary III–As–Sb NWs on silicon is extremely challenging, due to the surfactant effect of Sb. This review highlights the recent progress towards the monolithic integration of III–As–Sb NWs on Si. First, a comprehensive and in-depth review of recent progress made in the gold-free growth of III–As–Sb NWs directly on Si is explicated, followed by a detailed description of the root cause of Sb surfactant effect and its influence on the morphology and structural properties of Au-free ternary III–As–Sb NWs. Then, the various strategies that have been successfully deployed for mitigating the Sb surfactant effect for enhanced Sb incorporation are highlighted. Finally, recent advances made in the development of CMOS compatible, Ternary III–As–Sb NWs based, high-performance optoelectronic devices are elucidated.

Raman characterization of single-crystalline Ga0.96Mn0.04As:Zn nanowires realized by ion-implantation

Recent progress in the realization of magnetic GaAs nanowires (NWs) doped with Mn has attracted a lot of attention due to their potential application in spintronics. In this work, we present a detailed Raman investigation of the structural properties of Zn doped GaAs (GaAs:Zn) and Mn-implanted GaAs:Zn (Ga_0.96Mn_0.04As:Zn) NWs. A significant broadening and redshift of the optical TO and LO phonon modes are observed for these NWs compared to as-grown undoped wires, which is attributed to strain induced by the Zn/Mn doping and to the presence of implantation-related defects. Moreover, the LO phonon modes are strongly damped, which is interpreted in terms of a strong LO phonon-plasmon coupling, induced by the free hole concentration. Moreover, we report on two new interesting Raman phonon modes (191 and 252 cm^-1) observed in Mn ion-implanted NWs, which we attribute to E_g (TO) and A_1g (LO) vibrational modes in a sheet layer of crystalline arsenic present on the surface of the NWs. This conclusion is supported by fitting the observed Raman shifts for the SO phonon modes to a theoretical dispersion function for a GaAs NW capped with a dielectric shell.

Epitaxially grown III-arsenide-antimonide nanowires for optoelectronic applications

Epitaxially grown ternary III-arsenide-antimonide (III-As-Sb) nanowires (NWs) are increasingly attracting attention due to their feasibility as a platform for the integration of largely lattice-mismatched antimonide-based heterostructures while preserving the high crystal quality. This and the inherent bandgap tuning flexibility of III-As-Sb in the near- and mid-infrared wavelength regions are important and auspicious premises for a variety of optoelectronic applications. In this review, we summarize the current understanding of the nucleation, morphology-change and crystal phase evolution of GaAsSb and InAsSb NWs and their characterization, especially in relation to Sb incorporation during growth. By linking these findings to the optical properties in such ternary NWs and their heterostructures, a brief account of the ongoing development of III-As-Sb NW-based photodetectors and light emitters is also given.

Recent advances in III-Sb nanowires: from synthesis to applications

The excellent properties of III-V semiconductors make them intriguing candidates for next-generation electronics and optoelectronics. Their nanowire (NW) counterparts further provide interesting geometry and a quantum confinement effect which benefits various applications. Among the many members of all the III-V semiconductors, III-antimonide NWs have attracted significant research interest due to their narrow, direct bandgap and high carrier mobility. However, due to the difficulty of NW fabrication, the development of III-antimonide NWs and their corresponding applications are always a step behind the other III-V semiconductors. Until recent years, because of advances in understanding and fabrication techniques, electronic and optoelectronic devices based on III-antimonide NWs with novel performance have been fabricated. In this review, we will focus on the development of the synthesis of III-antimonide NWs using different techniques and strategies for fine-tuning the crystal structure and composition as well as fabricating their corresponding heterostructures. With such development, the recent progress in the applications of III-antimonide NWs in electronics and optoelectronics is also surveyed. All these discussions provide valuable guidelines for the design of III-antimonide NWs for next-generation device utilization.

Structural and spectroscopy characterization of coaxial GaAs/GaAsSb/GaAs single quantum well nanowires fabricated by molecular beam epitaxy

Through the growth and characterization of GaAs/GaAs_0.75Sb_0.25/GaAs SQW nanowires, an emission wavelength of about 1.2 μm is achieved.

A Two-Step Growth Pathway for High Sb Incorporation in GaAsSb Nanowires in the Telecommunication Wavelength Range

Self-catalyzed growth of axial GaAs_1−xSb_x nanowire (NW) arrays with bandgap tuning corresponding to the telecommunication wavelength of 1.3 µm poses a challenge, as the growth mechanism for axial configuration is primarily thermodynamically driven by the vapor-liquid-solid growth process. A systematic study carried out on the effects of group V/III beam equivalent (BEP) ratios and substrate temperature (T_sub) on the chemical composition in NWs and NW density revealed the efficacy of a two-step growth temperature sequence (initiating the growth at relatively higher T_sub = 620 °C and then continuing the growth at lower T_sub) as a promising approach for obtaining high-density NWs at higher Sb compositions. The dependence of the Sb composition in the NWs on the growth parameters investigated has been explained by an analytical relationship between the effective vapor composition and NW composition using relevant kinetic parameters. A two-step growth approach along with a gradual variation in Ga-BEP for offsetting the consumption of the droplets has been explored to realize long NWs with homogeneous Sb composition up to 34 at.% and photoluminescence emission reaching 1.3 µm at room temperature.

Near Full-Composition-Range High-Quality GaAs1-xSbx Nanowires Grown by Molecular-Beam Epitaxy

Here we report on the Ga self-catalyzed growth of near full-composition-range energy-gap-tunable GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires by molecular-beam epitaxy. GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires with different Sb content are systematically grown by tuning the Sb and As fluxes, and the As background. We find that GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires with low Sb content can be grown directly on Si(111) substrates (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.60) and GaAs nanowire stems (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.50) by tuning the Sb and As fluxes. To obtain GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires with x ranging from 0.60 to 0.93, we grow the GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires on GaAs nanowire stems by tuning the As background. Photoluminescence measurements confirm that the emission wavelength of the GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires is tunable from 844 nm (GaAs) to 1760 nm (GaAs_0.07Sb_0.93). High-resolution transmission electron microscopy images show that the grown GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires have pure zinc-blende crystal structure. Room-temperature Raman spectra reveal a redshift of the optical phonons in the GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires with x increasing from 0 to 0.93. Field-effect transistors based on individual GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires are fabricated, and rectifying behavior is observed in devices with low Sb content, which disappears in devices with high Sb content. The successful growth of high-quality GaAs_1-xSb_x nanowires with near full-range bandgap tuning may speed up the development of high-performance nanowire devices based on such ternaries.

From Twinning to Pure Zincblende Catalyst-Free InAs(Sb) Nanowires

III-V nanowires are candidate building blocks for next generation electronic and optoelectronic platforms. Low bandgap semiconductors such as InAs and InSb are interesting because of their high electron mobility. Fine control of the structure, morphology, and composition are key to the control of their physical properties. In this work, we present how to grow catalyst-free InAs1-xSbx nanowires, which are stacking fault and twin defect-free over several hundreds of nanometers. We evaluate the impact of their crystal phase purity by probing their electrical properties in a transistor-like configuration and by measuring the phonon-plasmon interaction by Raman spectroscopy. We also highlight the importance of high-quality dielectric coating for the reduction of hysteresis in the electrical characteristics of the nanowire transistors. High channel carrier mobilities and reduced hysteresis open the path for high-frequency devices fabricated using InAs1-xSbx nanowires.

Room temperature GaAsSb single nanowire infrared photodetectors

Antimonide-based ternary III-V nanowires (NWs) allow for a tunable bandgap over a wide range, which is highly interesting for optoelectronics applications, and in particular for infrared photodetection. Here we demonstrate room temperature operation of GaAs0.56Sb0.44 NW infrared photodetectors grown by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy. These GaAs0.56Sb0.44 NWs have uniform axial composition and show p-type conductivity with a peak field-effect mobility of ∼12 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1)). Under light illumination, single GaAs0.56Sb0.44 NW photodetectors exhibited typical photoconductor behavior with an increased photocurrent observed with the increase of temperature owing to thermal activation of carrier trap states. A broadband infrared photoresponse with a long wavelength cutoff at ∼1.66 μm was obtained at room temperature. At a low operating bias voltage of 0.15 V a responsivity of 2.37 (1.44) A/W with corresponding detectivity of 1.08 × 10(9) (6.55 × 10(8)) cm√Hz/W were achieved at the wavelength of 1.3 (1.55) μm, indicating that ternary GaAs0.56Sb0.44 NWs are promising photodetector candidates for small footprint integrated optical telecommunication systems.

Rectifying Single GaAsSb Nanowire Devices Based on Self-Induced Compositional Gradients

Device configurations that enable a unidirectional propagation of carriers in a semiconductor are fundamental components for electronic and optoelectronic applications. To realize such devices, however, it is generally required to have complex processes to make p-n or Schottky junctions. Here we report on a unidirectional propagation effect due to a self-induced compositional variation in GaAsSb nanowires (NWs). The individual GaAsSb NWs exhibit a highly reproducible rectifying behavior, where the rectifying direction is determined by the NW growth direction. Combining the results from confocal micro-Raman spectroscopy, electron microscopy, and electrical measurements, the origin of the rectifying behavior is found to be associated with a self-induced variation of the Sb and the carrier concentrations in the NW. To demonstrate the usefulness of these GaAsSb NWs for device applications, NW-based photodetectors and logic circuits have been made.

Gold-free ternary III-V antimonide nanowire arrays on silicon: twin-free down to the first bilayer

With the continued maturation of III-V nanowire research, expectations of material quality should be concomitantly raised. Ideally, III-V nanowires integrated on silicon should be entirely free of extended planar defects such as twins, stacking faults, or polytypism, position-controlled for convenient device processing, and gold-free for compatibility with standard complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) processing tools. Here we demonstrate large area vertical GaAsxSb1-x nanowire arrays grown on silicon (111) by molecular beam epitaxy. The nanowires' complex faceting, pure zinc blende crystal structure, and composition are mapped using characterization techniques both at the nanoscale and in large-area ensembles. We prove unambiguously that these gold-free nanowires are entirely twin-free down to the first bilayer and reveal their three-dimensional composition evolution, paving the way for novel infrared devices integrated directly on the cost-effective Si platform.

Vertical III-V nanowire device integration on Si(100)

We report complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS)-compatible integration of compound semiconductors on Si substrates. InAs and GaAs nanowires are selectively grown in vertical SiO2 nanotube templates fabricated on Si substrates of varying crystallographic orientations, including nanocrystalline Si. The nanowires investigated are epitaxially grown, single-crystalline, free from threading dislocations, and with an orientation and dimension directly given by the shape of the template. GaAs nanowires exhibit stable photoluminescence at room temperature, with a higher measured intensity when still surrounded by the template. Si-InAs heterojunction nanowire tunnel diodes were fabricated on Si(100) and are electrically characterized. The results indicate a high uniformity and scalability in the fabrication process.