Growing III–V semiconductor heterostructures on SiC/Si substrates

A three-layer heterostructure consisting of AlN ($\sim$0.72 $\mu$m thick), AlGaN ($\sim$1.82 $\mu$m thick), and GaN ($\sim$2.2 $\mu$m thick) layers has been grown by hydride–chloride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) method on a Si substrate with a SiC buffer nanolayer. The heterostructure was studied using scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and other techniques. The results showed that SiC/Si substrates can be used for growing films of III–V semiconductor compounds by HVPE at a high rate ($\sim$66 $\mu$m/h) free of cracks and with small residual elastic stresses ($\sim$160 MPa).