Removal of GaAs growth substrates from II–VI semiconductor heterostructures

We report on a process that enables the removal of II–VI semiconductor epilayers from their GaAs growth substrate and their subsequent transfer to arbitrary host environments. The technique combines mechanical lapping and layer selective chemical wet etching and is generally applicable to any II–VI layer stack. We demonstrate the non-invasiveness of the method by transferring an all-II–VI magnetic resonant tunneling diode. High resolution x-ray diffraction proves that the crystal integrity of the heterostructure is preserved. Transport characterization confirms that the functionality of the device is maintained and even improved, which is ascribed to completely elastic strain relaxation of the tunnel barrier layer.