Study of p-Fe₃O₄/n-(GaAs,Si) Heterostructures: Fabrication and Physical Properties

We report preparation and investigation of p -n heterostructures based on Fe₃O₄ thin films grown on semiconductor Si and GaAs substrates. Fe₃O₄ films with thickness ranging from 60 to 300 nm were grown at 350÷450°C using dc magnetron sputtering technique. The measurement of X-ray diffraction and reflection high energy electron diffraction revealed polycrystalline microstructure of thin Fe₃O₄ films deposited on both Si and GaAs substrate. Investigation of surface composition by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy showed that Fe 2p peak consists of three main peaks, namely, metallic iron Fe(0), Fe(II), and Fe(III). Transport measurements of Fe₃O₄/n-(Si, GaAs) heterostructures demonstrated nonlinear current-voltage (I -V) dependences in the temperature range from 300 K to 78 K.