Epitaxial growth of cadmium sulfide films on silicon

A 300-nm-thick cadmium sulfide epitaxial layer on silicon was grown for the first time. The grown was performed by the method of evaporation and condensation in a quasi-closed volume at a substrate temperature of 650°C and a growth time of 4 s. In order to avoid a chemical reaction between silicon and cadmium sulfide (at this temperature, the rate constant of the reaction is ~103) and to prevent etching of silicon by sulfur, a high-quality silicon carbide buffer layer ~100 nm thick was preliminarily synthesized by the substitution of atoms on the silicon surface. The ellipsometric, Raman, electron diffraction, and trace element analyses showed a high structural perfection of the CdS layer and the absence of a polycrystalline phase.