MicroRaman Study of Nanostructured Ultra-Thin AlGaN/GaN Thin Films Grown on Hybrid Compliant SiC/Por-Si Substrates

Abstract

In our study, for the first time we demonstrate the advantages of using a compliant hybrid substrate of porSi/SiC to grow high-quality ultra-thin nanostructured AlxGa1−xN/GaN heterostructures using molecular beam epitaxy with plasma-activated nitrogen. Comparison of our experimental results obtained by micro-Raman spectroscopy, deconvolution, and the fitting of the experimental Raman spectra and subsequent calculations with information from already established literature sources show that the use of such a hybrid SiC/porSi substrate has a number of undeniable advantages for the growth of ultra-thin AlxGa1−xN/GaN nanoheterostructures without requiring the use of thick AIIIN buffer layers. Direct growth on a hybrid compliant substrate of SiC/porSi leads to a substantial relaxation in the elastic stresses between the epitaxial film, porous silicon, and silicon carbide, which consequently affects the structural quality of the ultra-thin AlxGa1−xN/GaN epitaxial layers. The experimental and computational data obtained in our work are important for understanding the physics and technology of AlxGa1−xN/GaN nanoheterostructures and will contribute to their potential applications in optoelectronics. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.