Stacking-fault energy of II–VI compounds

Stacking-fault energies on the {111} plane in ZnTe (zinc blende structure) and on the (0001) plane in ZnO (wurtzite structure) have been estimated to be 16 ± 4 and greater than 43 mJ m−2, respectively, by weak-beam electron microscopy of dislocations. The stacking-fault energies of the above crystals and previously obtained ones of other II-VI compounds, CdTe, CdS, CdSe, ZnSe and ZnS, are correlated with material parameters such as the ionicity of the crystal. It is found that the stacking-fault energies of II-VI compounds, together with those of six III-V compounds so far reported, show a strong correlation with the charge redistribution indices found by Phillips end Van Vechten (1969). The physical implication of the correlation is discussed.