GaAs Growth Rates of 528 µm/h Using Dynamic-Hydride Vapor Phase Epitaxy with a Nitrogen Carrier Gas

We demonstrate record GaAs growth rates approaching 530 μm/h using nitrogen carrier gas and 400 μm/h using hydrogen carrier gas in a dynamic-hydride vapor phase epitaxy reactor. We measured root mean square surface roughness below 1 nm using a 1 μm × 1 μm atomic force microscopy scan for GaAs growth rates up to 483 μm/h using a nitrogen carrier gas and 400 μm/h using a hydrogen carrier gas. We performed computational fluid dynamics modeling to study the effect of the carrier gas choice on the thermal profile within the reactor and how that influences the degree of AsH3 decomposition. The modeling suggests that the lower thermal conductivity of the nitrogen carrier gas minimizes the amount of AsH3 that thermally decomposes before reaching the wafer surface and the heavier atomic mass decreases the likelihood that AsH3 will reach the heated reactor walls, leading to a growth rate enhancement relative to the hydrogen carrier case in a hydride-enhanced growth regime.