Hole spins in Ge quantum wells have shown success in
both spintronic
and quantum applications, thereby increasing the demand for high-quality
material. We performed material analysis and device characterization
of commercially grown shallow and undoped Ge/SiGe quantum well heterostructures
on 8-in. (100) Si wafers. Material analysis reveals the high crystalline
quality, sharp interfaces, and uniformity of the material. We demonstrate
a high mobility (1.7 × 105 cm2 V–1 s–1) 2D hole gas in a device with a conduction
threshold density of 9.2 × 1010 cm–2. We study the use of surface preparation as a tool to control barrier
thickness, density, mobility, and interface trap density. We report
interface trap densities of 6 × 1012 eV–1. Our results validate the material’s high quality and show
that further investigation into improving device performance is needed.
We conclude that surface preparations which include weak Ge etchants,
such as dilute H2O2, can be used for postgrowth
control of quantum well depth in Ge-rich SiGe while still providing
a relatively smooth oxide–semiconductor interface. Our results
show that interface state density is mostly independent of our surface
preparations, thereby implying that a Si cap layer is not necessary
for device performance. Transport in our devices is instead limited
by the quantum well depth. Commercially sourced Ge/SiGe, such as studied
here, will provide accessibility for future investigations.