Single-crystal wafers with a (001) surface orientation were deformed at room temperature by indentation. In the deformation field, a strong anisotropic distribution of defects was found by electron microscopic investigation. The plastic deformation took place on inclined (111) and (111) planes, and (111) and (111) planes, respectively. The deformation on (111) and (111) planes involved Shockley stacking faults with fault vectors of a/6[211]. During annealing (350C, 1h), the deformation field expanded and, at some distance from the indentation centre, the stacking faults reacted and a series of perfect dislocations having Burgers vectors of a/2[110] was created. The deformation on (111) and (111) planes took place directly via the creation of perfect dislocations having Burgers vectors of a/2[110]. The structural defects induced by room-temperature deformation could be identified as being electrically active centres characterized by enhanced non-radiative carrier recombination.

Anisotropic Deformation Behaviour of GaAs. H.R.Höche, J.Schreiber: Physica Status Solidi A, 1984, 86[1], 229–36