Eutectic Formation, V/III Ratio, and Controlled Polarity Inversion in Nitrides on Silicon

The crystallographic polarity of AlN grown on Si(111) by plasma‐assisted molecular beam epitaxy is intentionally inverted from N‐polar to Al‐polar at a planar boundary. The position of the inversion boundary is controlled by a two‐step growth process that abruptly changes from Al‐rich to N‐rich growth conditions. The polarity inversion is induced by the presence of Si, which is incorporated from an Al–Si eutectic layer that forms during the initial stages of AlN growth and floats on the AlN surface under Al‐rich growth conditions. When the growth conditions change to N‐rich, the Al and Si in the eutectic react with the additional N‐flux and are incorporated into the solid AlN film. Relatively low levels of Al–Si eutectic formation combined with lateral variations in the Si incorporation lead to nonuniformity in the polarity inversion and formation of surprisingly narrow, vertical inversion domains. The results suggest that intentional incorporation of uniform layers of Si may provide a method for producing polarity engineered nitride structures. Controlled polarity inversion in AlN on Si is induced by the incorporation of Si from an Al–Si eutectic layer. A planar lateral inversion boundary is resulted when the eutectic, formed during initially Al‐rich growth, is incorporated by an abrupt N‐flux increase. Lateral variations in the Si incorporation lead to nonuniformity in the polarity inversion and formation of narrow, vertical inversion domains.