Selective area growth of GaN nanorods on patterned W/SiO2/Si substrates by RF-MBE

We report on the selective area growth (SAG) of GaN nanorods on Si substrates masked with W or SiO2 and also on bare Si substrates by RF plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy (RF-MBE). The growth of GaN (i.e. irradiation of Ga and RF plasma-activated N-2) on the W mask layer results in the appearance of a ring reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) pattern coming from alpha-W. In contrast, broken ring RHEED patterns from GaN nanorods are clearly observed on SiO2 and Si surfaces. Ex-situ scanning Auger microscopy analysis confirms that no growth of GaN takes place on W. Utilizing this phenomenon, we have demonstrated the SAG of GaN nanorods on Si substrates partly masked with W. We will discuss this phenomenon in terms of the difference in the desorption energy of Ga on W, SiO2, and Si. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.