INDIUM-PHOSPHIDE WHISKERS GROWN BY ION-BOMBARDMENT

Ar+-ion bombardment of monocrystalline InP at 3 keV is shown to grow I nP whiskers at 100 degrees C or so. The whiskers are usually topped wi th a hemispherical In crystal, lengthening along the trajectories of i ncoming ions. The orientation of the whiskers is InP [111], independen t of the ion-incidence angle, and thus the InP lattice is constructed under the bombardment by energetic ions. These facts indicate that ion bombardment in a few keV regime is not always destructive but sometim es activates the lattice construction process.