Recent studies have shown evidence for the aggregation of self-interstitials in ion-implanted Si, resulting in nanoscopic damage structures. Similarly, self-interstitial atoms were expected to play an important role for defect clustering in ion-implanted GaAs. Accurate first-principles total-energy calculations were reported for different As and Ga self-interstitial configurations. These results were used to study by first-principles total-energy calculations the structural and electronic properties of small complexes involving self-interstitials and/or antisites.

Small Self-Interstitial Clusters in GaAs. G.Zollo, R.M.Nieminen: Journal of Physics - Condensed Matter, 2003, 15[6], 843-53