Migration enhanced molecular-beam epitaxy of III-V quantum dot arrays using non-lithographic AAO template

Abstract

We report a highly effective method on selective growth of ordered arrays of III-V quantum dots (QDs) on GaAs(100) substrate by migration enhanced molecular-beam epitaxy (ME-MBE) using anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template. ME-MBE method can enhance the migration and evaporation of group III adatoms on AAO template resulting in highly selective growth with no visible nucleation on the surface of AAO. The shadowing and blocking effects commonly experienced with conventional molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) are significantly reduced. Uniform arrays of III-V QDs with mean diameter of 60 nm and periodicity of 100 nm are obtained. Our results show that ME-MBE method has potential applications for selective growth of semiconductor heteronanostructures. © 2012 The Electrochemical Society.