Unusual elastic constants of cubic MnTe in strained-layer superlattices measured by X-ray diffraction

Elastic constants of the recently grown nonequilibrium zinc-blende form of MnTe were measured. Strained layer MnTe/ZnTe superlattices in which MnTe appears in this zinc-blende form were studied using triple crystal X-ray diffraction. The diffraction spectra were fitted using a dynamical model to determine the thickness and the lattice constants of each layer. From these and other measurements, the elastic constants C11 and C12 of MnTe were determined to be 2.22±0.1 and 1.16±0.1, respectively. These values are very low compared to all other zinc-blende or diamond structure materials investigated so far.