Initial Stages of Growth of Semipolar AlN on a Nanopatterned Si(100) Substrate.

Scanning electron microscopy is used for studies of the initial stages of the formation of semipolar AlN (10 1) and AlN (10 2) layers during metal–organic vapor-phase epitaxy on a Si (100) substrate with a surface, on which a V-shaped nanostructure, whose elements are <100 nm in dimensions, is formed (a NP-Si(100) substrate). It is shown that, in the initial stage of epitaxy on the NP-Si(100) substrate, nuclei of AlN crystals are formed and then, depending on the crystallographic orientation of the V walls, crystals faceted by AlN (10 1) or AlN (10 2) planes are formed, correspondingly, on Si (111) or Si (111) misoriented in the [110] direction by 7°. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]