Metastable surface ordering in strain relaxed Si0.5Ge0.5 epitaxial layers grown at high temperature

We have studied compositional ordering in the near surface region of 3500 Angstrom thick unstrained Si0.5Ge0.5(001) samples grown by chemical vapor deposition. Measuring asymptotic Bragg scattering along integer and half-integer truncation rods, we found a type of metastable ordering at this surface which is characterized by integer/half-integer reflections along the integer order truncation rods. We show unambiguously that those scattering features originate from a thin layer at the surface. Annealing at 750 degrees C extinguished these reflections irreversibly, while the reflections of the RS3 bulk structure were not affected. Anomalous scattering at the Ge K edge also confirmed the existence of a new structure in the near surface region.