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Distributions of kinetic pathways in strain relaxation of heteroepitaxial films

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 October 2017

Dustin Andersen Open the ORCID record for Dustin Andersen [Opens in a new window]  and
Robert Hull
Dustin Andersen*
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, & Center for Materials, Devices and Integrated Systems, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 12180, USA
Robert Hull
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, & Center for Materials, Devices and Integrated Systems, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 12180, USA
*
a) Address all correspondence to this author. e-mail: anderd8@rpi.edu
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Abstract

The kinetic relaxation pathways for strained heteroepitaxial films are mapped using a process simulator that integrates experimental and model descriptions of the energetic and kinetic parameters that define the nucleation, propagation, and interaction of strain relieving dislocations. This paper focuses on Ge x Si1−x /Si(100), but the methodologies described should be extendible to other systems. The kinetic pathways for strain evolution are plotted for film growth as functions of the primary kinetic parameters: growth temperature, growth rate, and initial lattice mismatch, generating relaxation surfaces for parameter pairs. Sensitivity analyses are presented of how deviations from mean parameters disperse the resultant relaxation surfaces. Finally, multi-parameter “fingerprinting” of the dislocation array is shown to illustrate how fundamental kinetic mechanisms—particularly dislocation nucleation mechanisms—define the final dislocation array. The overarching goal is to establish a robust framework for predicting, interrogating, and optimizing strain relaxation pathways and underlying mechanisms, for misfit dislocations in strained heteroepitaxial films.

Keywords

dislocationssimulationepitaxy
Type
Invited Feature Paper
Information
Journal of Materials Research , Volume 32 , Issue 21: Focus Issue: Jan van der Merwe: Epitaxy and the Computer Age , 14 November 2017 , pp. 3977 - 3991
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Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2017 

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Footnotes

Contributing Editor: Artur Braun

This paper has been selected as an Invited Feature Paper.

References

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