Exploiting the difference in lattice structures for formation of self-assembled PbS dots on InP(110)

Via the example of PbS self-assembled nanodots on InP(110) we show that spontaneous self-organization at semiconductor interfaces can be achieved due to different lattice structure of the constituents with close lattice constants. Regularly shaped triangular pyramidal PbS dots almost perfectly oriented on the substrate and distributed reasonably uniform in size can be grown in this way by molecular beam epitaxy. The average lateral dot size can be varied between 15 and 35 nm by appropriate choice of growth temperature and total PbS coverage.