Atomic force microscopy study of strained InGaAs quantum disks self-organizing on GaAs (n11)B substrates

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Abstract
Strained quantum‐box structures are naturally formed during the interrupted growth of AlGaAs and InGaAs films on GaAs (n11)B substrates. InGaAs films organize spontaneously into orderly rows of nanoscale disks buried beneath AlGaAs microcrystals. A comparative study by atomic force microscopy shows the alignment and uniformity to be optimum on (311)B surfaces. Both the uniformity and the shape of the microcrystals are not changed for base widths between 220 and 70 nm. Moreover the size and distance can be controlled independently by the In composition and the InGaAs layer thickness, respectively. In contrast, step bunching occurs on GaAs (n11)A substrates to form wirelike microstructures on GaAs (311)A substrates.