Transmission and scanning electron microscopy, Nomarski interference light microscopy and atomic force microscopy were used to study the structural properties of short-period superlattices. The relaxation behaviour was investigated as a function of the thickness for superlattices under compressive and tensile stresses. The strain state of the superlattices was determined by the layer thickness ratio and the chemical bonds (BeSe or ZnTe) at the interfaces. The relaxation of superlattices under tensile stresses occurred exclusively via cracking. Misfit dislocations were generated in the superlattices, under compressive stresses, at thicknesses which significantly exceeded the calculated critical thickness.

Structural Properties and Relaxation Behavior of Short-Period BeTe/ZnSe Superlattices. D.Gerthsen, T.Walter, F.Fischer, T.Gerhard, A.Waag, G.Landwehr: Journal of Crystal Growth, 2000, 214-215, 330-4