Thermal stability of stacked self-assembled InP quantum dots (QDs) embedded in Ga0.51In0.49P (GaInP) under ex situ rapid thermal annealing (RTA) is studied by photoluminescence spectroscopy and quantitative high-resolution electron microscopy. It is found that InP QDs intermix with surrounding GaInP, and that this is enhanced with increasing temperature and duration of RTA. The preferential direction of the intermixing and reshaping of the QDs changes at different stages of RTA. This anisotropy is attributed to strain-assisted interdiffusion, and is expected in stacked QDs of other material systems. (C) 2002 American Institute of Physics.