Strain relaxation in ZnSe/GaAs(001) heterostructure grown by molecular beam epitaxy was studied by transmission electron microscopy. In as-grown samples, an array of perfect misfit dislocations, lying along <310> directions, with Burgers vector ½<011> inclined to the interface was observed. The corresponding threading segments propagate by glide in {331} planes, leaving misfit segments in the interface. From a mechanical equilibrium analysis, it was concluded that, in the case of low misfit (0.27%), the critical thickness for {331} planes was less than for {111} glide. Dislocations with the ½<011> Burgers vector lying along <310> directions were more efficient at relaxing the misfit strain than dislocations lying along <110> directions.

<310> Misfit Dislocations in ZnSe/GaAs(001) Heterostructures. S.Lavagne, C.Levade, G.Vanderschaeve: Journal of Physics - Condensed Matter, 2002, 14[48], 13291-8