Strain sensitivity in the nitrogen 1s NEXAFS spectra of gallium nitride

- We study the nitrogen 1s X-ray absorption spectra (XAS) of strained GaN thin films.
- The strong linear dichroism in the XAS of GaN originates from anisotropic wurtzite structure.
- The lowest energy feature in the nitrogen 1s XAS of GaN varies linearly with the degree of strain.