Engineering phase formation thermo-chemistry for crystal growth of homogeneous ternary and quaternary III-V compound semiconductors from melts

Based on intrinsic alloy phase formation chemistry and thermodynamics, a no vel and unique way of producing compositionally homogeneous multi-component (binary, ternary, quaternary) semiconductor materials is presented. A free energy minimization computer program licensed from AEA Technology Engineer ing Software, Inc., has been employed to study the composition of the solid ifying phases from Ga-In-As-Sb melts at different temperatures and with var ious liquid compositions. The solid phases have been identified (theoretica lly and experimentally) to be either ternary compounds of Ga1-xInxSb, Ga1-x InxAs, GaAsySb1-y, and InAsySb1-y, or quaternary Ga1-xInxAsySb1-y depending on the melt temperature and composition. By engineering the thermochemistr y of preferential phase formation in the Ga-In-As-Sb melt, compositionally uniform, single phase, crack free, large polycrystalline Ga1-xInxSb and Ga1 -xInxAs have been grown.