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Photoenhancement mechanism for oxygen chemisorption on GaAs(110) using visible light

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Abstract

Visible light from an argon ion laser (514.5 nm, 3 W/cm2) is seen to increase oxygen chemisorption on cleaved GaAs(110) surfaces up to a final coverage between one and two monolayers. Using photoemission spectroscopy to measure the oxygen coverage after simultaneous exposure of the surface to oxygen and light, we have determined that oxygen uptake for photoenhanced exposures is independent of sample temperature and doping type. In addition, significantly less enhancement is seen for weakly bound oxidizing molecules (N2O) relative to the effects with molecular oxygen. These results are explained by a photoenhancement mechanism in which energy is released in a surface recombination event, possibly in the form of nonthermal phonons, causing physisorbed gas molecules to dissociate and thereby overcoming a major rate limiting step of the reaction in the dark. This reaction mechanism is supported by calculations of the surface recombination rates and free carrier densities at the surface which show that only the recombination rate is correlated with enhanced oxygen uptake. Other mechanisms and experimental data are also discussed.

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Author notes

  1. K. A. Bertness

    Present address: Varian Research Center, K-221, 611 Hansen Way, 94303, Palo Alto, CA, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Stanford Electronics Laboratories, Stanford University, 94305, Stanford, CA, USA

    K. A. Bertness, P. H. Mahowald, C. E. McCants, A. K. Wahi, T. Kendelewicz, I. Lindau & W. E. Spicer

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  1. K. A. Bertness
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  2. P. H. Mahowald
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  3. C. E. McCants
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  6. I. Lindau
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Bertness, K.A., Mahowald, P.H., McCants, C.E. et al. Photoenhancement mechanism for oxygen chemisorption on GaAs(110) using visible light. Appl. Phys. A 47, 219–228 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00615927

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