Work

Determination of atomic vacancies in InAs/GaSb strained-layer superlattices by atomic strain

Year: 2017

Type: article

Abstract: Determining vacancy in complex crystals or nanostructures represents an outstanding crystallographic problem that has a large impact on technology, especially for semiconductors, where vacancies introduce defect levels and modify the electronic structure. However, vacancy is hard to locate and its structure is difficult to probe experimentally. Reported here are atomic vacancies in the InAs/GaSb strained-layer superlattice (SLS) determined by atomic-resolution strain mapping at picometre precision. It is shown that cation and anion vacancies in the InAs/GaSb SLS give rise to local lattice relaxations, especially the nearest atoms, which can be detected using a statistical method and confirmed by simulation. The ability to map vacancy defect-induced strain and identify its location represents significant progress in the study of vacancy defects in compound semiconductors.

Source: IUCrJ

DOI: 10.1107/s2052252517016219

Authors: Honggyu Kim, Yifei Meng, Ji-Hwan Kwon, Jean-Luc Rouviére, Jian Min Zuo

Institutions: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, CEA Grenoble, Institut Nanosciences et Cryogénie

Language: English

Topic: Advanced Electron Microscopy Techniques and Applications

Subfield: Structural Biology

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,200