Surface X-ray diffraction during GaAs/MnSb/Ga(In)As epitaxial growth

Multilayer structures comprised of a central layer of the binary transition metal pnictide MnSb and outer layers of standard semiconductors have been grown using molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). The growth of the GaAs overlayers was characterized using a combination of reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) and in situ surface x-ray diffraction (SXRD). It was found that a GaAs overlayer can be grown via MBE onto a MnSb(1 1̅01)/GaAs(001) virtual substrate. For both GaAs(111)A and InGaAs(111)A starting substrates, it was found that the GaAs overlayer altered the final strain state of the central MnSb layer causing a change from tensile strain to compressive strain in the out of plane direction.