Simulations of Atomic Level Stresses in Systems of Buried Ge / Si Islands

Stress distribution in laterally ordered arrays of coherent Ge islands on Si(001) buried in Si cap layers is examined using atomistic simulations. The obtained hydrostatic stress dependence on the spacer layer thickness shows a nearly linear inverse dependence, unlike the commonly used inverse cubic dependence derived in the framework of an isolated embedded force dipole source model. Additionally, the hydrostatic stress on the spacer surface is found to scale more closely with the area of the island rather than its volume as implicit in the use of the force dipole model.