We have revisited the critical thickness for plastic relaxation hc of SiGe on Si(001). To that end, we have started from prime 200-mm Si(001) wafers and grown (at 20 Torr with SiH2Cl2 and GeH4) various thickness and Ge content SiGe layers in an Epi Centura reduced-pressure–chemical-vapor-deposition chamber. Growth temperature was reduced from 700 °C to 550 °C, as the Ge content increased from 12% to 52%, to minimize surface roughening. X-ray diffraction (XRD) was performed on all samples to determine hc for the various Ge contents probed. Fully strained layers were characterized by: (i) peaks at a constant incidence angle that became narrower and more intense as the thickness increased, and (ii) the presence of numerous thickness fringes on each side of the layers’ peaks. Meanwhile, broader, less intense peaks (without thickness fringes) closer to the Si substrate peak were associated with plastically relaxed SiGe layers. Plastic strain relaxation was more gradual and less complete in higher Ge content layers grown at lower temperatures. We then performed haze and atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements to have wafer and local scale quantifications of the surface roughening, which occurs when exceeding hc. For 12%, 22%, and 32% Ge, the haze and the surface roughness drastically increased for thicknesses greater than hc. For 42% Ge, the haze and the surface roughness were low for layers that had barely begun to relax, and became much larger for layers that were more plastically relaxed. Finally, for 52% Ge, there was a continuous but less pronounced increase of the haze and surface roughness when getting close to or exceeding hc. The critical thickness for plastic relaxation inferred from XRD was, for Ge content 22% and above, approximately two times higher than predicted by the People and Bean theory [Appl. Phys. Lett. 49, 229 (1986)]. However, some of the thickest SiGe 32%–52%, layers, considered fully strained in XRD, were observed by AFM to have a few “plow” lines, which are the surface signatures of misfit dislocations.

This paper reports the first demonstration of 300 mm In0.53Ga0.47As-on-insulator (InGaAs-OI) substrates. The use of direct wafer bonding and the Smart Cut™ technology lead to the transfer of high quality InGaAs layer on large Si wafer size (300 mm) at low effective cost, taking into account the reclaim of the III–V on Si donor substrate. The optimization of the three key building blocks of this technology is detailed. (1) The III–V epitaxial growth on 300 mm Si wafers has been optimized to decrease the defect density. (2) For the first time, hydrogen-induced thermal splitting is made inside the indium phosphide (InP) epitaxial layer and a wide implantation condition ranges is observed on the contrary to bulk InP. (3) Finally a specific direct wafer bonding with alumina oxide has been chosen to avoid outgas diffusion at the alumina oxide/III–V compound interface.