Ab-initio study of electronic and optical properties of InN in wurtzite and cubic phases

We have performed systematic first principle calculations for the electronic and optical properties of a narrow band gap semiconductor InN in cubic and wurtzite phases by ‘state-of-the-art’ DFT calculations within generalized gradient approximation (GGA) and Engel-Vosko's corrected generalized gradient approximation (EVGGA) using full potential linear augmented plane wave (FPLAPW) method as implemented in WIEN2k code. The total energy for the wurtzite phase of InN was found to be smaller by 0.0184 Ry/molecule by cubic phase which confirms the greater stability of the wurtzite structure than the cubic one. Band structure, effective masses, density of states, valence charge densities, and dielectric functions are computed and presented in detail. The critical points are extracted out of calculated dielectric function, compared with available measured data and are explained in terms of transitions occurred in the band structure along different symmetry and antisymmetry lines. The valence band maxima and conduction band minima are strongly dominated by N-2p states and located at the Γ-symmetrical line which predicts its direct band gap nature in both phases.     

Evolution of III-V nitride alloy electronic structure: the localized to delocalized transition

Addition of nitrogen to III-V semiconductor alloys radically changes their electronic properties. We report large-scale electronic structure calculations of GaAsN and GaPN using an approach that allows arbitrary states to emerge, couple, and evolve with composition. We find a novel mechanism of alloy formation where localized cluster states within the gap are gradually overtaken by a downwards moving conduction band edge, composed of both localized and delocalized states. This localized to delocalized transition explains many of the hitherto puzzling experimentally observed anomalies in III-V nitride alloys.     

Spatial correlations in GaInAsN alloys and their effects on band-gap enhancement and electron localization

In contrast to pseudobinary alloys, the relative number of bonds in quaternary alloys cannot be determined uniquely from the composition. Indeed, we do not know if the Ga0.5In0.5As0.5N0.5 alloy should be thought of as InAs+GaN or as InN+GaAs. We study the distribution of bonds using Monte Carlo simulation and find that the number of In-N and Ga-As bonds increases relative to random alloys. This quaternary-unique short range order affects the band structure: we calculate a blueshift of the band gap and predict the emergence of a broadband tail of localized states around the conduction band minimum.     

Stability and electronic structure of single-walled InN nanotubes

Based on density functional theory calculations, we predict the stability and electronic structures of single-walled indium nitride (InN) nanotubes. Compared with other group III-nitride nanotubes with a similar diameter, strain energies of InN nanotubes relative to their graphitic sheet are the lowest, suggesting the possibility of the formation of InN nanotubes. Considering the stability of a graphitic InN sheet, InN nanotubes are in metastable states with the stability between GaN nanotubes and AlN nanotubes. Contrary to the case of carbon nanotubes and BN nanotubes, the bond-length of both horizontal and vertical In–N bonds in InN nanotubes decreases as the tube diameter increases. InN nanotubes are all semiconductors with an almost constant band gap of about 1 eV. The existence of a direct gap in zigzag InN nanotubes and the small band gap indicate that they may have potential applications in light emitting devices and solar cells.     

Negative band gaps in dilute InNxSb1-x alloys

A thin layer of InNSb has been fabricated by low energy nitrogen implantation in the near-surface region of InSb. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicates that nitrogen occupies approximately 6% of the anion lattice sites. High-resolution electron-energy-loss spectroscopy of the conduction band electron plasma reveals the absence of a depletion layer for this alloy, thus indicating that the Fermi level is located below the valence band maximum (VBM). The plasma frequency for this alloy combined with the semiconductor statistics indicates that the Fermi level is located above the conduction band minimum (CBM). Consequently, the CBM is located below the VBM, indicating a negative band gap material has been formed. These measurements are consistent with k.p calculations for InN0.06Sb0.94 that predict a semimetallic band structure.     

Z型InN/SnS2范德华异质结增强光催化水分解

寻找高效的光催化剂分解水制氢是解决能源危机和环境问题的有效途径之一.基于第一性原理,对InN/SnS₂异质结的几何结构、电子结构和光催化水分解性能进行研究.结果表明InN/SnS₂异质结是具有的Ⅱ型能带排列半导体材料可以有效地分离电子空穴对.在光激发下,较小的带隙以及合适的内建电场使得光生载流子迁移路径成“Z”字型,这保留了InN/SnS₂异质结强氧化还原能力.光生电子在InN的导带底累积并发生析氢反应,而积累在SnS₂上的光生空穴使析氧反应自发发生.它们的带边位置都跨越了水的氧化还原电位,证明能够实现水的完全分解.因此,InN/SnS₂异质结有希望成为高效光解水催化剂.     

Effect of nitrogen doping on optical properties and electronic structures of SrZrO3 films

The effect of nitrogen doping on optical properties and electronic structures of SrZrO₃ (SZO) films was investigated both experimentally and theoretically. A shift of the absorption edge to the longer wavelength, i.e., the narrowing of the band gap caused by nitrogen doping was observed. The first-principles calculations revealed that the band gap reduced in nitrogen-doped SZO because of the localized N 2p states above O 2p states and the bottom of conduction band of Zr 4d shifting to a lower energy.     

InN的光致发光特性研究

研究了利用金属有机化学气相淀积生长的氮化铟薄膜的光致发光特性. 由于氮化铟本身具有很高的背景载流子浓度, 费米能级在导带之上, 通过能带关系图以及相关公式拟合光致发光图谱可以得到生长的氮化铟的带隙为0.67 eV, 并且可以计算出相应的载流子浓度为n=5.4×10¹⁸ cm^-3, 从而找到了一种联系光致发光谱与载流子浓度两者的方法. 另外通过测量变温条件下氮化铟的发光特性, 研究了发光峰位以及发光强度随温度的变化关系, 发现光致发光强度随温度的升高逐渐降低, 发光峰位随温度的升高只是红移, 并没有出现"S"形的非单调变化, 这种差异可能是由于光致发光谱的半高宽过高导致, 同时也可能与载流子浓度以及内建电场强度有关. 关键词： 氮化铟 金属有机化学气相淀积 光致发光 载流子浓度     

Optical properties of InN—the bandgap question

The recent controversy on the bandgap of InN is addressed, with reference to optical data on single crystalline thin film samples grown on sapphire. The optical absorption spectra deduced from transmission data or spectroscopic ellipsometry are consistent with a lowest bandgap around 0.7 eV in the low doping limit. Further, these data from a number of different independent authors and samples give values for the absorption coefficient within a factor 2 well above the absorption edge, supporting an intrinsic direct bandgap process. The presence of Mie resonances due to In inclusions in the InN matrix affects the shape of the absorption above the edge, but is less relevant for the discussion of the bandgap for pure InN. The alternative model of a deep level to conduction band transition requires the presence of a deep donor at a concentration close to 10²⁰ cm⁻³; in addition this concentration has to be the same within a factor 2 in all samples studied so far. This appears implausible, and no such deep donor could so far be identified from SIMS data in the highest quality samples studied. The line shape of the photoluminescence spectra can be quite well reproduced in a model for the optical transitions from the conduction band states to localized states above the valence band, including the Coulomb effects of the impurity potentials. A value of 0.69 eV for the bandgap of pure InN is deduced at 2 K. For samples that appear to be only weakly degenerate n-type two narrow peaks are observed in the photoluminescence at low temperature, assigned to conduction band—acceptor transitions. These peaks can hardly be explained in the deep level model. Recent cathodoluminescence data on highly n-doped InN films showing that the emission appears to be concentrated around In inclusions can also be explained as near bandgap recombination, considering the plausible enhancement due to interface plasmons. Finally, recent photoluminescence data on quantum structures based on InN and InGaN with a high In content appear to be consistent with moderate upshifts of the emission from a 0.7 eV value due to electron confinement.     

Effect of nitrogen concentration on the electronic and vibrational properties of zinc-blende InNxP1-x(x < 0.01)

Taking into account the recent advances in the epitaxial growth of single-crystal InN leading to a drastic re-evaluation of its fundamental energy band gap, we have studied the electronic properties of InN_xP_1-x (x < 0.01) ternary alloy. Using the empirical pseudopotential method under the virtual crystal approximation, combined with the Harrison bond orbital model, the band gap at Γ, X and L points, the effective masses of the Γ valley and the electronic charge densities are calculated as a function of nitrogen composition. The fitted expressions of the energy band gaps indicate that the bowing parameter at Γ reached a broad value for very low nitrogen incorporation ( ). Furthermore, the band gap at Γ point decreases drastically with increasing nitrogen composition up to 1%. The elastic constants and the optical phonon frequencies are also reported. Our theoretical results provide a good agreement with the available data.     

Theoretical optoelectronic analysis of intermediate-band photovoltaic material based on ZnY1-xOx （Y = S,Se, Te） semiconductors by first-principles calculations

The structural, energetic, and electronic properties of lattice highly mismatched ZnY1-xOx （Y = S, Se, Te） ternary alloys with dilute O concentrations are calculated from first principles within the density functional theory. We demonstrate the formation of an isolated intermediate electronic band structure through diluted O-substitute in zinc-blende ZnY （Y = S, Se, Te） at octahedral sites in a semiconductor by the calculations of density of states （DOS）, leading to a significant absorption below the band gap of the parent semiconductor and an enhancement of the optical absorption in the whole energy range of the solar spectrum. It is found that the intermediate band states should be described as a result of the coupling between impurity O 2p states with the conduction band states. Moreover, the intermediate bands （IBs） in ZnTeO show high stabilization with the change of O concentration resulting from the largest electronegativity difference between O and Te compared with in the other ZnSO and ZnSeO.     

Band mixing in narrow gap semiconductors

The interaction of conduction and valence bands in narrow gap semiconductors such as InSb and HgCdTe influences the position and width of subband energy levels in space-charge layers. While a nonzero width can only occur if electrons from the conduction band can tunnel into approximately degenerate states of the valence band the level shifts due to band mixing are always present. We present a Green's function treatment which allows in a simple way to discuss the dependence of band mixing effects on the parameters of thek·p-Hamiltonian in particular the band gap. The essential qualitative feature of the level shifts is adecrease of subband energy separation withdecreasing effective mass. This agrees with recent experimental results for Hg_1-x Cd _x Te.     

不同Yb掺杂浓度的ZnO的电子结构与光学特性

本文基于密度泛函理论(DFT)框架下的第一性原理计算方法,研究了不同Yb浓度掺杂ZnO体系的电子结构和光学性质.计算得到的结果证明,Yb掺杂ZnO后会造成电子结构和光学性质的明显改变.增加掺杂浓度使能带带隙逐渐变窄,其费米能级向上移动到导带,表现出n型半导体的特性;在Yb-4f态导带附近的带隙中产生了新的缺陷,同时观察到更好的吸收系数和折射率.因此,Yb掺杂ZnO对其电子性质和光学结构有很大的影响,为进一步深入了解掺杂ZnO性质的影响提供理论基础.     

New Energy Spectra Structure of Polaron in Trans-Polyacetylene

In the weakly coupled electron-phonon systems, the existing theory pointed out that the energy spectra of polaron include four electronic bound states. Our work shows that, due to the non-nearest neighbor hopping interactions, the electron-hole symmetry of the energy band structure implied by SSH model is broken, and the numbers of the bound electronic states are changed. For a negative charged polaron, one new bound state is found near the bottom of conduction band, and the original two bound states below the bottom of the valence band and above the top of the conduction band disappear. For a positive charged polaron, five bound states have been found: one of them is an additional bound state at the top of the conduction band, the others are just the states found in the SSH model. Besides, the energy gap 2Δ is slightly shifted by turning on the long-range hopping interactions.     

窄禁带半导体材料中共振缺陷态测量

运用量子电容谱测量技术，在窄禁带半导体材料InSb和HgCdTe价带和导带中分别发现了两个共振缺陷态．根据建立的实验模型研究了这些共振缺陷态的特性 关键词：     

Intrinsic electron accumulation at clean InN surfaces

The electronic structure of clean InN(0001) surfaces has been investigated by high-resolution electron-energy-loss spectroscopy of the conduction band electron plasmon excitations. An intrinsic surface electron accumulation layer is found to exist and is explained in terms of a particularly low Gamma-point conduction band minimum in wurtzite InN. As a result, surface Fermi level pinning high in the conduction band in the vicinity of the Gamma point, but near the average midgap energy, produces charged donor-type surface states with associated downward band bending. Semiclassical dielectric theory simulations of the energy-loss spectra and charge-profile calculations indicate a surface state density of 2.5 (+/-0.2)x10(13) cm(-2) and a surface Fermi level of 1.64+/-0.10 eV above the valence band maximum.     

Carrier localization in InN epilayers grown on Si substrates

The carrier localization in InN epilayers grown on Si(111) was studied using time-resolved photoluminescence (PL). The emission energy dependence and temperature dependence of the PL decay times revealed that carrier localization plays an important role in the recombination of this material system. A model based on the transition between free electrons in the conduction band and localized holes in the deeper tail states explains the carrier localization of InN epilayers. We suggest that the carrier localization in InN can be accounted for by the potential fluctuation caused by the random impurities.     

Effect of boron and nitrogen co-doping on CNT's electrical properties: Density functional theory

In this work, we have theoretically studied the changes in electrical properties of three different geometrical structures of carbon nanotubes upon co-doping them with boron and nitrogen atoms. We applied different doping mechanisms to study band structure variations in the doped structures. Doping carbon nanotubes with different atoms will create new band levels in the band structure and as a consequence, a shift in the Fermi level occurs. Whereas, filling up the lowest conduction/ upper valence bands created an up/ downshift in the Fermi level. Moreover, dopants concentration and dopants position play a critical rule in defining the number of new band levels. These new band levels in the band gap region represented as new peaks appeared in the density of states. These new bands are solely attributed to co-doping carbon nanotubes with boron and nitrogen atoms.     

Effects of the second and third neighbor hopping interactions on the electronic states of soliton in polyacetylene

We have studied the energy spectra and the electronic states of a soliton in the weakly coupled electron-phonon systems using an extension of SSH model that includes non-nearest neighbor hopping interactions. The results show that: (1) the electron-hole symmetry of the energy band structure implied by SSH model is broken, and the energy gap 2 increases. (2) for a negative charged soliton, only two bound states have been found, one of them is the midgap state, another is a new shallow state near the bottom of the conduction band; for a neutral soliton, all three bound states exist as in the SSH model, but their localizations are strengthened; for a positive charged soliton, four bound states have been found, one of which is an additional state near the top of the conduction band.