It was recalled that a large barrier to the formation of good-quality interfaces between these materials, via molecular beam epitaxial growth, was posed by the precipitation of In-Te related compounds at the interface; due to the interdiffusion of In and Te. Here, an attempt was made to insert an -Sn layer at the interface in order to prevent interdiffusion, and the propagation of planar defects which might enhance diffusion. The proof, that an -Sn layer which had been grown at 150C prevented interdiffusion, was provided by comparing Raman spectroscopic data on CdTe/-Sn/InSb with data on -Sn/CdTe/InSb and CdTe/InSb structures. When the -Sn layer was grown at 220C, the Raman data showed that the prevention of interdiffusion became imperfect, although  in situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction patterns indicated the existence of a high-quality -Sn layer. The insertion of one monolayer of Cd at the interface of -Sn/CdTe improved the quality of the -Sn, and the use of a Cd over-pressure during the growth of CdTe improved the quality of the CdTe cap layer.

M.Kimata, T.Suzuki, K.Shimomura, M.Yano: Journal of Crystal Growth, 1995, 146[1-4], 433-8