Atomic-scale structure of disordered Ga1-xInxP alloys

Temperature and composition dependence of short-range order and entropy, and statistics of bond length: the semiconductor alloy (GaN)(1-x)(ZnO)(x)

We present total energy and force calculations for the (GaN)1-x(ZnO)x alloy. Site-occupancy configurations are generated from Monte Carlo (MC) simulations, on the basis of a cluster expansion model proposed in a previous study. Local atomic coordinate relaxations of surprisingly large magnitude are found via density-functional calculations using a 432-atom periodic supercell, for three representative configurations at x = 0.5. These are used to generate bond-length distributions. The configurationally averaged composition- and temperature-dependent short-range order (SRO) parameters of the alloys are discussed. The entropy is approximated in terms of pair distribution statistics and thus related to SRO parameters. This approximate entropy is compared with accurate numerical values from MC simulations. An empirical model for the dependence of the bond length on the local chemical environments is proposed.

Spatial correlations in GaInAsN alloys and their effects on band-gap enhancement and electron localization

In contrast to pseudobinary alloys, the relative number of bonds in quaternary alloys cannot be determined uniquely from the composition. Indeed, we do not know if the Ga0.5In0.5As0.5N0.5 alloy should be thought of as InAs+GaN or as InN+GaAs. We study the distribution of bonds using Monte Carlo simulation and find that the number of In-N and Ga-As bonds increases relative to random alloys. This quaternary-unique short range order affects the band structure: we calculate a blueshift of the band gap and predict the emergence of a broadband tail of localized states around the conduction band minimum.