Quantitative analysis of the compositional profile of a single quantum well by grazing incidence x-ray reflectivity and photoluminescence

A quantitative analysis method, using grazing incidence x-ray reflectivity (GIXR) and photoluminescence (PL), was applied to obtain the As profile of an InAsxP1-x/InP single quantum well (SQW) formed by AsH3 exposure of an InP surface. The profile could be uniquely determined by simultaneously matching of GIXR and PL with the observed ones. It was found that the so-called effective thickness model was not appropriate for the description of the As compositional profile at the SQW interface. Moreover, it underestimated the amount of incorporated As at the interface. However, the Gaussian As profile proposed in this study resulted in a quite well-matched GIXR curve with quantitative information on the total As amount and the grading of As at the interface. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(99)01015-3].