Atomic force microscope study of GaN films grown by hydride vapor phase epitaxy

We report the results of the investigation of the structural, surface morphological, and optical properties of GaN films grown by hydride vapor phase epitaxy. These films were grown on sapphire substrate with no intentional dopings. These as-grown GaN film samples with thickness ranging from 5.58 mu m to 14.9 mu m were investigated under room temperature conditions. The surface morphology of these films was investigated using an atomic force microscopy (AFM). The root mean square (RMS) values of surface roughness range from 0.281 nm to 0.133 nm. The thicker films show lower defect counts with a defect density of about 2 x 10(8) cm(-2). The structural property of these films was measured by double crystal X-ray diffraction (DC-XRD). The full width at half maximum (FWHM) of X-ray diffraction angle decreases as the film thickness increases with a lowest FWHM of about 265.5 arcsec. The optical properties of these films were investigated by photoluminescence (PL) measurement at room temperature. The results show a dominant near band-edge UV emission peak that increases with the film thickness with very weak yellow emission band.