Theoretical investigation on structural stability of InN thin films on 3C–SiC(0 0 1)

The structural stability of InN thin films on 3C–SiC(0 0 1) substrate is systematically investigated based on an empirical interatomic potential, which incorporates electrostatic energy due to covalent bond charges and ionic charges. The calculated energy differences among coherently grown 3C–InN(0 0 1), 3C–InN(0 0 1) with misfit dislocations (MDs), and 2H–InN(0 0 0 1) imply that the coherently grown 3C–InN(0 0 1) is stable when the film thickness is less than 7 monolayers (MLs) while 2H–InN(0 0 0 1) is stabilized for the thickness beyond 8 MLs. This is because InN layers in 2H–InN(0 0 0 1) are fully relaxed by one MD. The analysis of atomic configuration at the 3C–InN(0 0 1)/3C–SiC(0 0 1) interfaces reveals that the coordination number of interfacial atoms is quite different from that in the bulk region. Thus, 3C–InN(0 0 1) with MDs on 3C–SiC(0 0 1) is always metastable over entire range of film thickness, consistent with the successful fabrication of 2H–InN(0 0 0 1) on 3C–SiC(0 0 1) by the molecular beam epitaxy. These results suggest that the mismatch in atomic arrangements at the interface crucially affects the structural stability of InN thin films on 3C–SiC(0 0 1) substrate.