InGaAs ternary bulk crystal growth method using InGaAs ternary source

We have developed a new zone growth method using an InGaAs ternary source to obtain an In/sub x/Ga/sub 1-x/As (x/spl sim/0.3) long single crystal. A seed used for the zone growth method is an InGaAs crystal grown on a [100] GaAs seed by the vertical gradient freeze technique. The new zone growth method is different from the conventional zone growth one in two respects. (1) The source material is changed from GaAs to InGaAs, because the use of a GaAs source causes the lack of InAs in the melt during the zone crystal growth, an InGaAs source is produced by quenching an In/sub x/Ga/sub 1-x/As (x/spl sim/0.3) melt. (2) No isolation plate for reducing the supply rate of the source into the melt is inserted between the source material and the melt. The supply rate of the source is reduced by restraining the convection due to inverting positions of an InGaAs seed and a source material. The InGaAs zone crystal obtained was 15 mm long and the InAs composition (x) was around 0.27. The single crystal region was 8 mm long. The best value of the full widths of the half maximums of the (400) X-ray diffraction peaks was 20 seconds.