EFFECT OF THE INTERFACE ON THE ELECTRICAL-PROPERTIES OF ZNSE GAAS HETEROJUNCTIONS GROWN BY MOLECULAR-BEAM EPITAXY/

Using current-voltage and ac conductance measurements, nitrogen-doped ZnSe grown by molecular beam epitaxy on p-GaAs substrates heterostruct ures was studied. The reverse current-voltage characteristics of the h eterojunction show a soft saturation and a hysteresis, A slow current increase takes place following the application of a constant reverse b ias until a steady-state value is reached. This behavior is explained in a model involving slow interface states at the heterointerface that result in a voltage-induced barrier lowering. The observation of a br oad peak in the ac conductance vs temperature spectra confirms the mod el. The presence of such states may seriously affect the performance o f ZnSe/GaAs-based devices. (C) 1997 American Institute of Physics.