Modeling and experimental verification of deposition behavior during AlGaAs growth:: a comparison for the carrier gases N2 and H2

A modeling and experimental study is carried out to understand why low-pressure metalorganic vapor-phase epitaxy (LP-MOVPE) of AlGaAs in nitrogen atmosphere differs from that in hydrogen in a horizontal tube type of reactor. To this end flow, heat transfer as well as the key chemical species' mass transport are considered. The increased uniformity in N-2 atmosphere is related to the higher molecular weight and, therefore to the higher gas density of the carrier resulting in a flow structure that is more favorable for improved growth rate uniformity of AlGaAs on the substrate. Due to the so called "cold finger" [L. Stock, W. Richter, J. Crystal Growth 77 (1986) 144; D.F. Fotiadis, M. Bockholt, K.F. Jensen, W. Richter, J. Crystal Growth 100 (1990) 577.] effect as well as the enhanced inertia of the carrier gas and lower diffusion coefficients of the growth rate limiting chemical species in N-2, lower total flow rates are found to be optimal for material quality and layer thickness uniformity when using N-2 as carrier gas. The dependence of growth rate uniformity on the carrier gas and total flow rate can only be understood by the detailed numerical modeling of three-dimensional flow, heat and species' mass transfer with resulting layer deposition on the susceptor. The results of experiments are in good agreement with the modeling computations. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.