Suppression of alloy fluctuations in GaAs-AlGaAs core-shell nanowires

Loitsch, Bernhard; Jeon, Nari; Döblinger, Markus; Winnerl, Julia; Parzinger, Eric; Matich, Sonja; Wurstbauer, Ursula; Riedl, Hubert; Abstreiter, Gerhard; Finley, Jonathan J.; Lauhon, Lincoln J. and Koblmüller, Gregor (2016): Suppression of alloy fluctuations in GaAs-AlGaAs core-shell nanowires. In: Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 109, No. 9, 93105

Abstract

Probing localized alloy fluctuations and controlling them by growth kinetics have been relatively limited so far in nanoscale structures such as semiconductor nanowires (NWs). Here, we demonstrate the tuning of alloy fluctuations in molecular beam epitaxially grown GaAs-AlGaAs core-shell NWs by modifications of shell growth temperature, as investigated by correlated micro-photoluminescence, scanning transmission electron microscopy, and atom probe tomography. By reducing the shell growth temperature from T > 600 degrees C to below 400 degrees C, we find a strong reduction in alloy fluctuation mediated sharp-line luminescence, concurrent with a decrease in the non-randomness of the alloy distribution in the AlGaAs shell. This trend is further characterized by a change in the alloy compositional structure from unintentional quasi-superlattices of Ga- and Al-rich AlGaAs layers at high T to a nearly homogeneous random alloy distribution at low T. Published by AIP Publishing.

• Item Type: Journal article
• Faculties: Chemistry and Pharmacy > Department of Chemistry
• Subjects: 500 Science > 540 Chemistry
• ISSN: 0003-6951
• Language: English