Solution growth of gallium phosphide p-n junctions by liquid phase epitaxy

Layers of gallium phosphide have been grown by homo-epitaxy from gallium solution onto liquid-encapsulated Czochralski grown substrates. The impurities tellurium and zinc have been introduced to produce electroluminescent p-n junctions and electrical studies of these dopants in gallium phosphide have been used to investigate their incorporation into the crystal lattice near the p-n junction. During growth the distribution of dopants predicted from the values of effective and equilibrium distribution coefficients is disturbed by the diffusion of zinc from the doped gallium solution and from the p-type material into the n-type layer. Under normal growth conditions this latter effect has been found to be of greater significance than the redistribution of impurities associated with the back etching and regrowth of the n-type region.