GaN obtained on quartz substrates through the nitridation of GaAs films deposited via CSVT

The use of gallium arsenide (GaAs) films to obtain gallium nitride (GaN) on a quartz substrate is reported herein. The GaAs films were deposited on quartz substrates via the close-spaced vapor transport technique (CSVT) with good crystalline quality. GaN was obtained via nitridation wherein the GaAs samples were subjected to ammonia and hydrogen flow at atmospheric pressure. Several experiments were conducted at 800 °C, 900 °C, and 1000 °C, suggesting that nitridation at 900 °C is suitable for GaN obtention. Another group of experiments was conducted to observe the effect of nitridation time on the morphology of GaN. The nitridation temperature was kept at 900 °C while the nitridation times were 10, 20, and 30 min. XRD and EDS characterizations revealed that the nitridation time determines the production of samples with both GaAs and GaN structures (10 min) or only the GaN structure (20 and 30 min). A GaN film exhibiting a wurtzite preferential structure was obtained subsequent to 30 min of nitridation.