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- Genre: Academic theses
- Genre: Masters Thesis
- Creators: Yu, Hongbin
Description
This dissertation is on the study of structural and optical properties of some III-V and II-VI compound semiconductors. The first part of this dissertation is a study of the deformation mechanisms associated with nanoindentation and nanoscratching of InP, GaN, and ZnO crystals. The second part is an investigation of some fundamental issues regarding compositional fluctuations and microstructure in GaInNAs and InAlN alloys. In the first part, the microstructure of (001) InP scratched in an atomic force microscope with a small diamond tip has been studied as a function of applied normal force and crystalline direction in order to understand at the nanometer scale the deformation mechanisms in the zinc-blende structure. TEM images show deeper dislocation propagation for scratches along <110> compared to <100>. High strain fields were observed in <100> scratches, indicating hardening due to locking of dislocations gliding on different slip planes. Reverse plastic flow have been observed in <110> scratches in the form of pop-up events that result from recovery of stored elastic strain. In a separate study, nanoindentation-induced plastic deformation has been studied in c-, a-, and m-plane ZnO single crystals and c-plane GaN respectively, to study the deformation mechanism in wurtzite hexagonal structures. TEM results reveal that the prime deformation mechanism is slip on basal planes and in some cases, on pyramidal planes, and strain built up along particular directions. No evidence of phase transformation or cracking was observed in both materials. CL imaging reveals quenching of near band-edge emission by dislocations. In the second part, compositional inhomogeneity in quaternary GaInNAs and ternary InAlN alloys has been studied using TEM. It is shown that exposure to antimony during growth of GaInNAs results in uniform chemical composition in the epilayer, as antimony suppresses the surface mobility of adatoms that otherwise leads to two-dimensional growth and elemental segregation. In a separate study, compositional instability is observed in lattice-matched InAlN films grown on GaN, for growth beyond a certain thickness. Beyond 200 nm of thickness, two sub-layers with different indium content are observed, the top one with lower indium content.
ContributorsHuang, Jingyi (Author) / Ponce, Fernando A. (Thesis advisor) / Carpenter, Ray W (Committee member) / Smith, David J. (Committee member) / Yu, Hongbin (Committee member) / Treacy, Michael Mj (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Group III-nitride semiconductors have been commercially used in the fabrication of light-emitting diodes and laser diodes, covering the ultraviolet-visible-infrared spectral range and exhibit unique properties suitable for modern optoelectronic applications. InGaN ternary alloys have energy band gaps ranging from 0.7 to 3.4 eV. It has a great potential in the application for high efficient solar cells. AlGaN ternary alloys have energy band gaps ranging from 3.4 to 6.2 eV. These alloys have a great potential in the application of deep ultra violet laser diodes. However, there are still many issues with these materials that remain to be solved. In this dissertation, several issues concerning structural, electronic, and optical properties of III-nitrides have been investigated using transmission electron microscopy. First, the microstructure of InxGa1-xN (x = 0.22, 0.46, 0.60, and 0.67) films grown by metal-modulated epitaxy on GaN buffer /sapphire substrates is studied. The effect of indium composition on the structure of InGaN films and strain relaxation is carefully analyzed. High luminescence intensity, low defect density, and uniform full misfit strain relaxation are observed for x = 0.67. Second, the properties of high-indium-content InGaN thin films using a new molecular beam epitaxy method have been studied for applications in solar cell technologies. This method uses a high quality AlN buffer with large lattice mismatch that results in a critical thickness below one lattice parameter. Finally, the effect of different substrates and number of gallium sources on the microstructure of AlGaN-based deep ultraviolet laser has been studied. It is found that defects in epitaxial layer are greatly reduced when the structure is deposited on a single crystal AlN substrate. Two gallium sources in the growth of multiple quantum wells active region are found to cause a significant improvement in the quality of quantum well structures.
ContributorsWei, Yong (Author) / Ponce, Fernando (Thesis advisor) / Chizmeshya, Andrew (Committee member) / McCartney, Martha (Committee member) / Menéndez, Jose (Committee member) / Yu, Hongbin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
This thesis mainly focuses on the study of quantum efficiency (QE) and its measurement, especially for nanowires (NWs). First, a brief introduction of nano-technology and nanowire is given to describe my initial research interest. Next various fundamental kinds of recombination mechanisms are described; both for radiative and non-radiative processes. This is an introduction for defining the internal quantum efficiency (IQE). A relative IQE measurement method is shown following that. Then it comes to the major part of the thesis discussing a procedure of quantum efficiency measurement using photoluminescence (PL) method and an integrating sphere, which has not been much applied to nanowires (NWs). In fact this is a convenient and useful approach for evaluating the quality of NWs since it considers not only the PL emission but also the absorption of NWs. The process is well illustrated and performed with both wavelength-dependent and power-dependent measurements. The measured PLQE is in the range of 0.3% ~ 5.4%. During the measurement, a phenomenon called photodegradation is observed and examined by a set of power-dependence measurements. This effect can be a factor for underestimating the PLQE and a procedure is introduced during the sample preparation process which managed to reduce this effect for some degree.
ContributorsChen, Dongzi (Author) / Ning, Cun-Zheng (Thesis advisor) / Zhang, Yong-Hang (Committee member) / Yu, Hongbin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
The larger tolerance to lattice mismatch in growth of semiconductor nanowires (NWs) offers much more flexibility for achieving a wide range of compositions and bandgaps via alloying within a single substrate. The bandgap of III-V InGaAsP alloy NWs can be tuned to cover a wide range of (0.4, 2.25) eV, appealing for various optoelectronic applications such as photodetectors, solar cells, Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs), lasers, etc., given the existing rich knowledge in device fabrication based on these materials.
This dissertation explores the growth of InGaAsP alloys using a low-cost method that could be potentially important especially for III-V NW-based solar cells. The NWs were grown by Vapor-Liquid-Solid (VLS) and Vapor-Solid (VS) mechanisms using a Low-Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition (LPCVD) technique. The concept of supersaturation was employed to control the morphology of NWs through the interplay between VLS and VS growth mechanisms. Comprehensive optical and material characterizations were carried out to evaluate the quality of the grown materials.
The growth of exceptionally high quality III-V phosphide NWs of InP and GaP was studied with an emphasis on the effects of vastly different sublimation rates of the associated III and V elements. The incorporation of defects exerted by deviation from stoichiometry was examined for GaP NWs, with an aim towards maximization of bandedge-to-defect emission ratio. In addition, a VLS-VS assisted growth of highly stoichiometric InP thin films and nano-networks with a wide temperature window from 560◦C to 720◦C was demonstrated. Such growth is shown to be insensitive to the type of substrates such as silicon, InP, and fused quartz. The dual gradient method was exploited to grow composition-graded ternary alloy NWs of InGaP, InGaAs, and GaAsP with different bandgaps ranging from 0.6 eV to 2.2 eV, to be used for making laterally-arrayed multiple bandgap (LAMB) solar cells. Furthermore, a template-based growth of the NWs was attempted based on the Si/SiO2 substrate. Such platform can be used to grow a wide range of alloy nanopillar materials, without being limited by typical lattice mismatch, providing a low cost universal platform for future PV solar cells.
This dissertation explores the growth of InGaAsP alloys using a low-cost method that could be potentially important especially for III-V NW-based solar cells. The NWs were grown by Vapor-Liquid-Solid (VLS) and Vapor-Solid (VS) mechanisms using a Low-Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition (LPCVD) technique. The concept of supersaturation was employed to control the morphology of NWs through the interplay between VLS and VS growth mechanisms. Comprehensive optical and material characterizations were carried out to evaluate the quality of the grown materials.
The growth of exceptionally high quality III-V phosphide NWs of InP and GaP was studied with an emphasis on the effects of vastly different sublimation rates of the associated III and V elements. The incorporation of defects exerted by deviation from stoichiometry was examined for GaP NWs, with an aim towards maximization of bandedge-to-defect emission ratio. In addition, a VLS-VS assisted growth of highly stoichiometric InP thin films and nano-networks with a wide temperature window from 560◦C to 720◦C was demonstrated. Such growth is shown to be insensitive to the type of substrates such as silicon, InP, and fused quartz. The dual gradient method was exploited to grow composition-graded ternary alloy NWs of InGaP, InGaAs, and GaAsP with different bandgaps ranging from 0.6 eV to 2.2 eV, to be used for making laterally-arrayed multiple bandgap (LAMB) solar cells. Furthermore, a template-based growth of the NWs was attempted based on the Si/SiO2 substrate. Such platform can be used to grow a wide range of alloy nanopillar materials, without being limited by typical lattice mismatch, providing a low cost universal platform for future PV solar cells.
ContributorsHashemi Amiri, Seyed Ebrahim (Author) / Ning, Cun-Zheng (Thesis advisor) / Petuskey, William (Committee member) / Yu, Hongbin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018