Growing III–V Semiconductor Heterostructures on SiC/Si Substrates

A three-layer heterostructure consisting of AlN (∼0.72 μm thick), AlGaN (∼ 1.82 μm thick), and GaN (∼2.2 μm thick) layers has been grown by hydride–chloride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) method on a Si substrate with a SiC buffer nanolayer. The heterostructure was studied using scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and other techniques. The results showed that SiC/Si substrates can be used for growing films of III–V semiconductor compounds by HVPE at a high rate (~66 μm/h) free of cracks and with small residual elastic stresses (~160 MPa).