Large scale surface structure formed during GaAs (001) homoepitaxy

Abstract

Atomic force microscopy studies have been performed on GaAs (001) homoepitaxyfilmsgrown by molecular beam epitaxy. Multilayered features are seen to evolve when the growth conditions favor island nucleation. As the epilayer thickness is increased these features grow in all dimensions but the angle of inclination remains approximately constant at 1°. The mounding does not occur on surfaces grown in step flow. We propose that the multilayered features are an unstable growth mode which relies on island nucleation and the presence of a step edge barrier.