Aluminium Gallium Nitride (AlyGa1-yN) quantum dots (QDs) with thin sub-µm AlxGa1-xN layers (with x > y) were grown by molecular beam epitaxy on 3 nm and 6 nm thick hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) initially deposited on c-sapphire substrates. An AlN layer was grown on h-BN and the surface roughness was investigated by atomic force microscopy for different deposited thicknesses. It was shown that for thicker AlN layers (i.e., 200 nm), the surface roughness can be reduced and hence a better surface morphology is obtained. Next, AlyGa1-yN QDs embedded in Al0.7Ga0.3N cladding layers were grown on the AlN and investigated by atomic force microscopy. Furthermore, X-ray diffraction measurements were conducted to assess the crystalline quality of the AlGaN/AlN layers and examine the impact of h-BN on the subsequent layers. Next, the QDs emission properties were studied by photoluminescence and an emission in the deep ultra-violet, i.e., in the 275-280 nm range was obtained at room temperature. Finally, temperature-dependent photoluminescence was performed. A limited decrease in the emission intensity of the QDs with increasing temperatures was observed as a result of the three-dimensional confinement of carriers in the QDs.
Keywords: X-ray diffraction; aluminium gallium nitride; atomic force microscopy; boron nitride; deep ultra-violet emission; molecular beam epitaxy; nitrides; photoluminescence; quantum dots; wide bandgap materials.