Surface structure and interface formation of Si on GaAs(100)

The interfacial development of Si on GaAs(100) has been studied using core level photoemission. The studies included arsenic rich and gallium rich starting surfaces and a variety of annealing procedures. Si deposited at various coverages below 10 monolayers (ML) onto a room temperature substrate yields a disordered surface. For coverages below 2 ML, subsequent annealing leads to a predominantly single domain 1×2 surface. Deposition onto a heated substrate in the range of 450–600 °C yields the 1×2 reconstruction directly. Growth of a GaAs–Si alloy yielded a 1×2 surface with diffraction spot broadening indicating considerable strain.