Epitaxial growth of rutile GeO2 via MOCVD

Abstract

Rutile germanium dioxide (r-GeO2) has been identified as an ultrawide bandgap semiconductor recently, featuring a bandgap of 4.68 eV—comparable to Ga2O3—but offering bipolar dopability, higher electron mobility, higher thermal conductivity, and higher Baliga figure of merit (BFOM). These superior properties position GeO2 as a promising material for various semiconductor applications. However, the epitaxial growth of r-GeO2, particularly in its most advantageous rutile polymorph, is still at an early stage. This work explores the growth of r-GeO2 using metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) on an r-TiO2 (001) substrate, utilizing tetraethyl germane as the precursor. Our investigations reveal that higher growth temperatures significantly enhance crystalline quality, achieving a full width at half maximum of 0.181° at 925 °C, compared to 0.54° at 840 °C and amorphous structures at 725 °C. Additionally, we found that longer growth durations increase surface roughness due to the formation of faceted crystals. Meanwhile, adjusting the susceptor rotation speed from 300 to 170 RPM plays a crucial role in optimizing crystalline quality, effectively reducing surface roughness by approximately 15 times. This study offers a foundational guide for optimizing MOCVD growth conditions of r-GeO2 films, emphasizing the crucial need for precise control over deposition temperature and rotation speed to enhance adatom mobility and effectively minimize the boundary layer thickness.