Molecular Beam Epitaxial Growth of CdTe Layers on InSb(111)A and B Polar Substrates

Abstract

We report a study of CdTe layers grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) on InSb(111)A and InSb(111)B substrates. The CdTe/InSb(111) heterostructures, prepared under different conditions, were characterized in-situ by reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). Ex-situ atomic force microscopy (AFM) and Raman spectroscopy were also applied. Our results indicate that In–Te compounds are formed at the interface. The concentrations of these compounds depend on substrate preparation, polarity of the (111) substrate, and annealing process before growth. As shown by RHEED and AFM, CdTe grows nearly two dimensionally on the (111)B surface, whereas on the A face a three dimensional growth, with polycrystalline regions, is obtained.