DIFFERENTIAL RESISTANCE OF AU GAAS1-XSBX TUNNELING CONTACTS IN THE ZERO-BIAS ANOMALY REGION - I - CONTACTS TO N-GAAS1-XSBX/

The current-voltage characteristics and the differential resistance R( V)=dV/dI of Au/n-GaAs1-xSbx tunneling contacts were investigated. Scho ttky barriers were prepared on n-GaAs1-xSbx epitaxial layers, which we re specially not doped, in the composition range 0.01<x<0.125. It was shown that the curves R(V) in the electron density range 2 x 10(18)les s than or equal to n less than or equal to 7 x 10(18) cm(-3) and tempe rature range 4.2 less than or equal to T less than or equal to 295 K a re described well by the tunneling theory employing a self-consistent calculation of the potential in the Schottky barrier region. A square- root dependence of the conductance G(V)=(dV/dI)(-1) on the bias voltag e V was observed in the zero-bias anomaly region in accordance with th e Al'tshuler-Aronov theory of quantum corrections introduced in the de nsity of states at the Fermi level by the characteristic features of t he electron-electron interaction in disordered metals. (C) 1998 Americ an Institute of Physics. [S1063-7826(98)01305-2].