Lateral epitaxial overgrowth of GaN films on sapphire and silicon substrates

We report the lateral epitaxial overgrowth of GaN films on (00.1) Al2O3 and (111) Si substrates by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. The lateral epitaxial overgrowth on Si substrates was possible after achieving quasimonocrystalline GaN template films on (111) Si substrates. X-ray diffraction, photoluminescence, scanning electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy were used to assess the quality of the lateral epitaxial overgrown films. Lateral growth rates more than five times as high as vertical growth rates were achieved for both lateral epitaxial overgrowths of GaN on sapphire and silicon substrates. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(99)04604-5].