Abstract
We report on a method based on cross-sectional scanning photoelectron microscopy and spectroscopy (XSPEM/S) for studying electronic structure of III-nitride surfaces and interfaces on a submicrometer scale. Cross-sectional III-nitride surfaces prepared by in situ cleavage were investigated to eliminate the polarization effects associated with the interface charges/dipoles normal to the cleaved surface. In contrast to the as-grown polar surfaces which show strong surface band bending, the cleaved nonpolar surfaces have been found to be under the flat-band conditions. Therefore, both doping and compositional junctions can be directly visualized at the cleaved nonpolar surfaces. Additionally, we show that the “intrinsic” valence band offsets at the cleaved III-nitride heterojunctions can be unambiguously determined.
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Acknowledgments
This work was supported in part by a research grant (NSC 98-2112-M-007-014-MY3) from the National Science Council (NSC) of Taiwan.
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Kuo, CT., Lee, HM., Wu, CL. et al. Electronic Properties of III-Nitride Surfaces and Interfaces Studied by Scanning Photoelectron Microscopy and Spectroscopy. MRS Online Proceedings Library 1202, 43 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1557/PROC-1202-I04-03
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1557/PROC-1202-I04-03