Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 February 2011
We present x-ray diffraction analysis of interfacial strain fields in crystalline semiconductor microstructures. In particular we report the observations of diffuse interference fringes, asymmetric grating diffraction patterns, and asymmetric crystal-truncation-rod profiles due to the straw-varying regions in a microstructure. From these diffraction features, both the longitudinal and the transverse strain gradients are determined, in addition to the average stram. These experimental results can be used to interpret other physical properties in microstructures such as band-gap energies and surface morphologies.