UNIFORM GAAS QUANTUM WIRES FORMED ON VICINAL GAAS(110) SURFACES BY 2-STEP MBE GROWTH

GaAs quantum wires are naturally formed by molecular beam epitaxy on v icinal GaAs (110) surfaces. These quantum wires are induced by the for mation of coherently aligned giant growth steps and thickness modulati on at step edges, Transmission electron microscope (TEM) observations show that lower growth temperature (similar to 500 degrees C) is suita ble for giant step formation and higher growth temperature (similar to 550 degrees C) is better for large thickness modulation. Therefore, t wo-step growth is employed to improve the uniformity and confinement e nergies of quantum wire structures, which are confirmed by TEM and AFM observations and photo- and cathodoluminescence measurements. (C) 199 7 Academic Press Limited.