C.P. Savant, A. Verma, T-S. Nguyen, L. van Deurzen, Y-H. Chen, Z. He, S.S. Rezaie, J. Gollwitzer, B. Gregory, S. Sarker, J. Ruff, G. Khalsa, A. Singer, D.A. Muller, H.G. Xing, D. Jena, J. Casamento
University of North Texas,
United States
Keywords: gallium nitride, nitrides, scandium nitride, epitaxy, growth, low energy, low temperature
Summary:
We report the self-catalyzed growth of highly crystalline, epitaxial layers of semiconducting ScN in molecular nitrogen environments, achieved without the use of ammonia or nitrogen-plasma activation – a reaction that proceeds even at room temperature. Self-activated ScN films have a twinned cubic crystal structure, atomic layering, and electronic and optical properties comparable to plasma-based methods. We extend our research to showcase scandium’s scavenging effect and demonstrate self-activated ScN growth under various growth conditions and on technologically significant substrates, such as 6H–SiC, AlN, and GaN. Ab initio calculations elucidate an energy-efficient and radical-free pathway for the self-activated growth of crystalline ScN films from molecular nitrogen. The findings open a new path to ultralow-energy, low-temperature synthesis of crystalline nitride semiconductor layers and beyond.