Nucleation and Growth of GaAs on a Carbon Release Layer by Halide Vapor Phase Epitaxy

Dennice M. Roberts, Hyunseok Kim, Elisabeth L. McClure, Kuangye Lu, John S. Mangum, Anna K. Braun, Aaron J. Ptak, Kevin L. Schulte, Jeehwan Kim, John Simon

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We couple halide vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) growth of III-V materials with liftoff from an ultrathin carbon release layer to address two significant cost components in III-V device - epitaxial growth and substrate reusability. We investigate nucleation and growth of GaAs layers by HVPE on a thin amorphous carbon layer that can be mechanically exfoliated, leaving the substrate available for reuse. We study nucleation as a function of carbon layer thickness and growth rate and find island-like nucleation. We then study various GaAs growth conditions, including V/III ratio, growth temperature, and growth rate in an effort to minimize film roughness. High growth rates and thicker films lead to drastically smoother surfaces with reduced threading dislocation density. Finally, we grow an initial photovoltaic device on a carbon release layer that has an efficiency of 7.2%. The findings of this work show that HVPE growth is compatible with a carbon release layer and presents a path toward lowering the cost of photovoltaics with high throughput growth and substrate reuse.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)45088-45095
Number of pages8
JournalACS Omega
Volume8
Issue number47
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 28 2023
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Chemistry
  • General Chemical Engineering

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