We investigated the influence of antimony (Sb) as a surfactant on the carrier and zinc (Zn) concentrations in a Zn-doped InGaAs layer grown by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) to obtain a high carrier concentration. Secondary ion mass spectroscopy analysis revealed that the Sb surfactant helped to increase both the incorporation efficiency of Zn atoms in the InGaAs layer and the activation rate of Zn atoms at a low growth temperature. Consequently, we achieved a carrier concentration as high as 6.5 x 10(19) cm(-3), which is the highest value ever reported for a Zn-doped InGaAs layer grown by MOVPE. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.