Misfit dislocations and stress in In1 − xGaxAs/GaAs heterostructures

We have estimated the elastic properties of In1 − xGaxAs/GaAs heterostructures and the characteristics of misfit dislocations in such heterostructures: misfit dislocation spacing, Burgers vector length in various interfaces, surface density of dangling bonds, film/substrate interface energy, critical film thickness below which pseudomorphic growth is possible without misfit dislocations, elastic strain energy of the film-substrate system, average elastic strain of a thin-film island as a function of its radius, thermal stresses induced by the thermal-expansion and lattice mismatches between the layers in contact, and crack length in the film.