DISLOCATION PATTERNING AND NANOSTRUCTURE ENGINEERING IN COMPOSITIONALLY GRADED SI1-XGEX SI LAYER SYSTEMS/

Dislocation morphologies in compositionally graded Si1-xGex epilayers grown on (001) Si substrates at low temperatures were studied by a com bination of experimental techniques sensitive to the plastic activity at different length scales. We demonstrate that strain relief in the t hick metastable layers is provided by ordered dislocation configuratio ns composed of narrow slip bands. These configurations are consistent with the dislocation morphologies predicted by the model of self-adjus tment of misfit dislocations. It is shown that crystallographic slip o f misfit dislocations in these layers can be used as a basis for a new and straightforward technique for the spatial patterning of semicondu ctor material on large areas at the nanometer length scale.