Improvement of the interface quality during thermal oxidation of Al0.98Ga0.02As layers due to the presence of low-temperature-grown GaAs

The role of a low-temperature-grown GaAs (LT GaAs) layer on the lateral oxidation of an Al0.98Ga0.02As/GaAs layer structure has been studied by transmission electron microscopy. Results show that structures incorporating LT GaAs develop better quality oxide/GaAs interfaces compared to reference samples without LT GaAs. While the latter have As accumulation in the vicinity of these interfaces, the structures with LT layers display sharper oxide–GaAs interfaces with a reduced concentration of As. These results are explained in terms of the high Ga vacancy concentration in the LT GaAs and the possible influence of those vacancies in enhancing As diffusion away from the oxide–semiconductor interface.