SCANNING-TUNNELING-MICROSCOPY OF III-V COMPOUND SEMICONDUCTOR (001) SURFACES

While the (001) oriented substrate of compound semiconductors are most commonly used in fabrication of wireless and opto-electronic devices by molecular beam epitaxy, metallorganic chemical vapor deposition and related techniques, their surface structures have been puzzling from the beginning of the development of the techniques with which these ma terials are artificially prepared. This paper reviews the advances in comprehensive understanding of the geometric and electronic structures and chemical properties of the principal reconstructions found on the (001) surface of III-V compound semiconductors including arsenides, s uch as GaAs, InAs and AlAs, phosphides, such as GaP and InP, antimonid es, such as GaSb, AlSb and InSb, and also nitrides (GaN), with the emp hasis on the GaAs(001), during the first decade following the inventio n of scanning tunneling microscopy.