Etch pit features in epitaxial layers, as observed by means of optical dark-field microscopy, were identified. The features were confirmed to be pits by using scanning electron microscopy. By using transmission electron microscopy, the various etch pits were correlated with crystallographic defects that were common in epitaxially grown II-VI materials. It was found that Frank-type stacking faults constituted the largest etch pits, followed by a paired configuration of Shockley-type stacking faults. The smallest etch pits were attributed to a single Shockley-type stacking fault.

G.D.U’Ren, M.S.Goorsky, G.Meis-Haugen, K.K.Law, T.J.Miller, K.W.Haberern: Applied Physics Letters, 1996, 69[8], 1089-91