Properties and self-organization of CdSe : S quantum islands grown with a cadmium sulfide compound source

We demonstrate a new technique to grow high-quality CdSe quantum films and islands with a very small sulfur contamination by using a cadmium sulfide c ompound source as Cd supply and additional Se flux. By monitoring the latti ce constant with reflection high-energy electron diffraction, it is shown t hat the sulfur is almost completely substituted by Se and CdSe with a conta mination below 5% sulfur is formed. The quantum structures obtained by the new method are generally of higher quality than those obtained by more conv entional growth methods using elemental sources, even if migration enhanced methods were employed. With a brief growth interruption or post-growth ann ealing step the initially smooth CdSe layer can be reorganized into islands . The duration of this step as well as the initial amount of deposition all ows a rather good control over the island formation. A strongly enhanced gr owth rate is observed for the first few monolayers of the ZnSe capping laye r, which indicates a partial dissolution of the islands in the ZnSe growth front and Cd segregation. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserve d.