Inhomogeneity of liquid-phase-epitaxial InGaAsP lattice matched on InP: Effects of transient growth

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Abstract
Band-gap and lattice constant data are presented characterizing the transient composition that occurs at the onset of liquid-phase-epitaxial growth of InGaAsP on InP substrates. This compositional inhomogeneity, a region of significantly different band gap and lattice constant than that of the remainder of the layer, is a result of the extreme nonequilibrium conditions that exist in the first milliseconds of growth. The consequences of a thin, strained, and band-gap-graded layer within a practical device are considered, and a method of producing crystals free of this basic inhomogeneity is demonstrated. The data permit a calculation of the changes in solidus atomic fraction of each atomic species present in the diffusion-limited growth, clarifying some aspects of incorporation kinetic effects. A mechanism for the transient growth is considered, based on new data and data of previous work.