Effect of gas flow rate on surface morphology and crystal quality of ZnTe epilayers grown on GaAs substrates

The effect of gas flow rate on surface morphology and crystal quality of ZnTe layers grown on the (1 0 0) GaAs substrates by atmospheric pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy with dimethylzinc and diethyltelluride as the source materials was investigated. The surface morphology of the ZnTe epilayers is significantly improved with increasing the total gas flow rate. X-ray rocking curve and photoluminescence measurements indicate that the total gas flow rate plays a vital role in the growth characteristics of the ZnTe epilayers, and the ZnTe epilayer with best crystal quality is obtained at the total gas flow rate around 300 standard cubic centimeters per minute (sccm) in this work.

Graphical abstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slideResearch highlights▶ Metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy is the promising technique for growing high quality of ZnTe. ▶ Surface morphology and crystal quality depend on the gas flow rate. ▶ Optimum of the gas flow rate leads high crystal quality of ZnTe.