A substrate holder employed for MOCVD and supporting a wafer on which crystal growth proceeds includes a molybdenum holder body, a GaAs polycrystalline film with a flat surface grown on a part of the surface of the molybdenum holder body where the wafer is absent, and an InP polycrystalline film grown on the GaAs polycrystalline film. Each of the polycrystalline films is grown to a thickness of 0.3 .mu.m or more at a temperature higher than the epitaxial growth temperature of 575.degree. C. During the MOCVD process, the emissivity of the molybdenum substrate holder is stable at a value near the emissivity of the wafer on the substrate holder and, therefore, the decomposition ratio of PH.sub.3 gas on the substrate holder is stable at a value near the decomposition ratio on the wafer, whereby any variation of the incorporation ratio of P atoms in the grown InGaAsP, i.e., a variation of the composition of the InGaAsP, is reduced and run-to-run variations of the composition of the grown crystal are reduced.