Heteroepitaxial AlN growth on c-plane sapphire substrates by ammonia-free high temperature metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

AlN films were hetero-epitaxially grown on c-plane sapphire substrates by ammonia-free high temperature metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (AFHT-MOCVD). The dependence of the AlN growth rate on the flow rate of source gases (H2, N2 and trimethylaluminum (TMA)) and the growth temperature were systematically investigated. The maximum AlN growth rate up to ∼4.0 μm/hour was obtained at the present growth conditions. Based on the experimental results, the possible mechanisms in the AFHT-MOCVD growth concerning the gas reactions are qualitatively discussed. The as-grown AlN epilayers were characterized by high-resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM). The narrow full width at half maximum (FWHM) values of symmetric (0002) and asymmetric (10–12) AlN diffractions are obtained ((0002): 211 arcsec, (10–12): 325 arcsec from a ∼3 μm thick AlN epilayer), showing the potential of the growth technique for the high quality AlN growth. © 2022 Elsevier B.V.