Orientation of CdTe epitaxial films on GaAs(100) grown by vacuum evaporation

The growth of (100)- and (111)-oriented CdTe epitaxial layers on (100)-oriented GaAs substrates were investigated. Ar⁺ plasma bombardment was used to remove the surface oxide layer, while preheating the substrate before evaporation was performed to deplete arsenic on the GaAs substrate surface. Results indicate that the CdTe(100) will grow on GaAs(100) with an oxide layer remaining on the surface. For the GaAs(100) substrate with the oxide layer removed by plasma bombardment, CdTe(100) will grow on the arsenic-depleted GaAs substrate, while CdTe(111) will grow on the GaAs substrate without arsenic depletion. A model is proposed that a tellurium-rich surface is formed on the arsenic-depleted GaAs surface through Ga-Te bonding on which the CdTe(100) will grow, whereas CdTe(111) will grow on a tellurium-poor surface. The photoluminescence investigation conforms to our proposed model.