Structure and chemistry of the Si(111)/AIN interface

摘要

We investigate the atomic structure and the chemistry of the Si(111)/A1N interface for an A1N film grown at low-temperature (735℃) by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. A heterogeneous interface is formed from the alternation of crystallographically abrupt and partly amorphous regions. The polarity of the A1N film, along with the projected atomic structure of the crystalline interface, is retrieved using high-angle annular dark field imaging, and a model, based on these experimental observations, is proposed for the bonding at the interface. Electron energy-loss spectrum-imaging, however, also reveals a chemical intermixing, placing our growth conditions at the onset of SiN_x interlayer formation.