Thermodynamic investigation of the phase instability of A3B5 five-component semiconductor solid solution

Abstract

The general criterion for the stability of multicomponent phases is adapted to the description of the thermodynamic state of five-component semiconductor solid solutions of the A3B5 system, which crystallize in the spharelite structure. For the GaxIn1-xPyAszSb1-y-z , AlxGayIn1-x-yAszSb1-z , AlxGayIn1-x-yPzAs1-z solid solutions, which are the most important in practical terms, the positions of the binodals and spinodals of decomposition are calculated depending on the temperature. It is shown that the regions of thermodynamically unstable states at typical temperatures of the synthesis of materials are located close to the compositions of solid solutions that are most important for practice. The thermodynamically unstable state of the five-component solid solutions should be taken into account when choosing and justifying technological modes for obtaining heterostructures for optoelectronic purposes.

Keywords

• heterostructures based on a3b5 semiconductors
• phase equilibria in multicomponent systems
• subsolidus and low-temperature region of phase diagram
• spinodal and binodal of multicomponent semiconductor solid solutions decomposition