Research on III-V semiconductor interfaces: Its impact on technology and devices

The paper presents some examples of interface studies which are intimately related to progress in III-V semiconductor technology and device physics. O ptical in-situ investigations of the MOVPE growth of InGaP/InP layers am es sential for the control of ordering phenomena in these layers which are rel evant for high performance optoelectronic devices. Interface roughness, whi ch is an essential parameter for the performance of heterostructure quantum devices, is a typical topic of interface investigations by e.g. transmissi on electron microscopy or X-ray scattering. As a further example studies on electronic interface states on metal/narrow gap III-V semiconductors are p resented which enabled the successful preparation of semiconductor/supercon ductor hybrid devices. For group III-nitrides with wurtzite structure the i nterplay of internal polarisation fields and charges in surface states yiel ds new challenges in order to understand and control Schottky barrier heigh ts and 2D confinement in heterostructure FETs.