GROWTH AND CHARACTERIZATION OF CDTE-ZNTE SHORT-PERIOD SUPERLATTICES

ZnTe-CdTe superlattices with periods ranging from 13 angstrom to 38 angstrom were grown by atomic layer epitaxy on (001) GaAs substrates and monitored in situ by reflected high-energy electron diffraction. The substrate temperature was varied from 215-degrees-C to 300-degrees-C. The superlattices were characterized by high-resolution X-ray diffraction and the growth rate per reaction cycle was determined from the separation of satellite peaks. Between 270 and 290-degrees-C, the growth rate maintained itself at exactly 0.5 monolayers per cycle, allowing the growth of precisely tailored structures. As the substrate temperature was reduced below 270-degrees-C, the growth rate increased to approximately 0.8 monolayers per cycle, but it did not reach 1 monolayer per cycle before polycrystalline ZnTe was nucleated at 205-degrees-C.