Topography of InP Surface Bombarded by O⁺₂ Ion Beam

The topography of InP surface bombarded by O⁺₂ ion beam was investigated. Rippled topographies were observed for bombarded samples, and the data show that the ripple formation starts from a sputtering depth of about 0.4 μm. The wavelength and the disorder of the ripples both increase as the sputtering depth increases. The wavelength of the ripples appears to be sputtering depth dependent rather than sputtering rate dependent. It is confirmed that the ion- beam-induced surface rippling can be effectively suppressed by sample rotation during bombardment.