Investigation on the interface abruptness in CBE-grown InGaAs/InP QW Structures

In this work we present a detailed analysis of chemical beam epitaxy-grown (CBE) InGaAs/InP multi quantum well (MQW) interfaces to explain experimental data from high quality single and multi-QWs. Our results compare well with the best published data we have obtained some outstanding results. For example, the very intense absorption peak and the high number of satellite peaks in the diffraction rocking curve, were obtained even on samples grown in non-optimized conditions. A careful use of growth interruption at the interfaces allows us to obtain monolayer (ml) interfaces. Nevertheless, the switching of the group V element at each interface leads to strain formation. This effect could become dramatic in superlattice structures with periods smaller than about 5 nm and barriers of less than 3-4 nm. More generally, the conditions for the growth of high quality single and multiple QWs is discussed in this work and these will be correlated with fourier transform photoluminesence (FTPL), high resolution x-ray diffraction (HRXRD), absorption, photo-absorption and photo-current (in PIN structures) measurements.