The electronic and structural properties of the silicon-gallium arsenide(110) interface

The passivation properties of the Si GaAs(110) interface have been studied using scanning tunnelling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS) and soft X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (SXPS). Silicon has been deposited at room temperature and STM images show the sub-monolayer growth of silicon islands on the GaAs substrate. The electrical properties of these islands together with the clean surface have been investigated using scanning tunnelling spectroscopy (STS). The spectroscopy clearly illustrates the difference in electrical properties between atomically flat regions of GaAs as compared to those containing defects or steps, i.e. where surface band bending occurs. We have investigated the use of sub-monolayer Si coverages to modify the electronic structure of the surface. Height variations of 3–4Aacross Si islands and 2Aacross steps on the GaAs surface have also been observed using the STM. STS spectra, collected simultaneously with the STM image, showed the Si to have semiconducting properties differing from that of crystalline Si and the GaAs substrate. Comparisons between the STM and STS results together with SXPS have provided a correlation between the structural, electrical and chemical nature of the Si/GaAs(110) interface.