Magneto-photoluminescence study of InGaAs quantum dots fabricated by droplet epitaxy

We have successfully measured magneto-photoluminescence of InGaAs quantum dots (QDs) fabricated by droplet epitaxy with highly dense Ga droplets, termed separated-phase enhance epitaxy with droplets (SPEED). In the low magnetic field region, the PL peak energy shift increases linearly with square of the magnetic field. From the estimated Bohr radii for the QDs, it is found that the size of the QDs in the lateral direction is 2.7-times larger than that in the vertical direction. Moreover, using high magnetic region for estimating the detailed lateral size, the cyclotron radius around 25 T in the QDs becomes equal to the lateral size of the QDs. The cyclotron radius of 5.1 nm at 25 T suggests that the size of the InGaAs QDs in lateral direction might be as small as about 10 nm.     

Structural characterization of Ga-doped Mg0.1Zn0.9O layers grown on ZnO/α-Al2O3 templates by P-MBE

In this study, structural properties of epitaxial Ga-doped Mg_0.1Zn_0.9O layers grown on ZnO/α-Al₂O₃ templates by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy have been investigated by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and high resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD). From analysis of the diffraction pattern, the monocrystallinity of the Mg_0.1Zn_0.9O layer with hexagonal structure is confirmed. The orientation relationship between Mg_0.1Zn_0.9O and the template is determined as (0 0 0 1)_Mg0.1Zn0.9O(0 0 0 1)_ZnO(0 0 0 1)_Al2O3 and [ [ ]_ZnO[ . The density of dislocations near the top surface layers measured by plan-view TEM is about 3.610¹⁰ cm⁻², one order of magnitude higher than the value obtained for ZnO layers on α-Al₂O₃ with a MgO buffer. Cross-sectional observation revealed that the majority of threading dislocations are in the [0 0 0 1] line direction, i.e. they lie along the surface normal and consist of edge, screw, and mixed dislocations. Cross- sectional TEM and X-ray rocking curve experiments reveal that most of dislocations are edge dislocations. The interface of Mg_0.1Zn_0.9O and ZnO layers and the effect of excess Ga-doping in these layers have been also studied.     

Temperature dependent characteristics of InAs/GaAs quantum dot laser grown by gas source molecular beam epitaxy

We report on the temperature dependent lasing characteristics of InAs/GaAs quantum dot lasers under continuous wave mode. The five-stacked InAs quantum dots were grown by gas-source molecular beam epitaxy with slightly different thickness. Ridge waveguide laser with stripe width of 6 μm was processed on the growth structure. The characteristic temperature was measured as high as infinity in the temperature range of 80–180 k. With the increase of injection current, the lasing spectra of laser diode broaden gradually at low temperature of 80 k. However, when the operation temperature increases from 80 to 300 K, the width of lasing spectrum reduces gradually from 40 to 2.0 nm. The lasing process is obviously different from that of a reference quantum well laser which widens its width of lasing spectra by increasing operation temperature. These experiments demonstrate that a carrier transfer from the smaller size of dots into larger dots caused by thermal effect play an important role in the lasing characteristic of quantum dot lasers. In addition, the laser can operate at maximum temperature of 80 °C under continuous wave mode with a maximum output power of 52 mW from one facet at 20 °C. A wavelength thermal coefficient of 0.196 nm/K is obtained, which is 2.8 times lower than that of QW laser. The low wavelength thermal coefficient of quantum dot laser is mainly attributed to its broad gain profile and state filling effects.     

Site control of InAs quantum dot nucleation by ex situ electron-beam lithographic patterning of GaAs substrates

Conventional electron-beam lithographic patterning of GaAs substrates followed by reactive-ion etching of small holes has been successfully used to control the nucleation of InAs dots. We have observed >50% single dot occupancy for holes wide and deep and show that the dot occupancy and dot size can be varied by changing the size of the holes. Luminescence from an array of these site-controlled dots has been demonstrated. Thus this use of substrate patterning is a viable technique to controllably place single dots at pre-determined positions in devices.     

Thermodynamic properties of two-dimensional few-electrons quantum dot using the static fluctuation approximation (SFA)

The two-dimensional GaAs parabolic quantum dot (QD) is investigated in the static fluctuation approximation (SFA) where both the magnetic field and the electron-electron interaction are fully taken into account. The thermodynamic properties of the system are computed as functions of the temperature and magnetic field for different numbers of electrons (N). It is noted that the mean internal energy increases with increasing number of electrons and magnetic field. This increase is not smooth, and a sudden change in slope is observed at a certain value of magnetic field for N≥4. It is found that the magnetization has sharp jumps for N≥4; for N≤3 a smooth monotonic diamagnetism is exhibited. A sharp peak is observed in the specific heat when the magnetic field is increased. It is found that the lowest-state transitions occur at a critical value of magnetic field. These transitions appear in the mean internal energy and magnetization.     

Electron and hole states in a quantum ring grown by droplet epitaxy: Influence of the layer inside the ring opening

The electronic structure of the conduction and valence bands of a quantum ring containing a layer inside the ring opening is modeled. This structure (nanocup) consists of a GaAs nanodisk (the cup’s bottom) and a GaAs nanoring (the cup’s rim) which encircles the disk. The whole system is embedded in an (Al,Ga)As matrix, and its shape resembles realistic ring structures grown by the droplet epitaxy technique. The conduction-band states in the structure are modeled by the single-band effective-mass theory, while the 4-band Luttinger–Kohn model is adopted to compute the valence-band states. We analyze how the electronic structure of the nanocup evolves from the one of a quantum ring when the size of either the nanodisk or the nanoring is changed. For that purpose, (1) the width of the ring, (2) the disk radius, and (3) the disk height are separately varied. For dimensions typical for experimentally realized structures, we find that the electron wavefunctions are mainly localized inside the ring, even when the thickness of the inner layer is 90% of the ring thickness. These calculations indicate that topological phenomena, like the excitonic Aharonov–Bohm effect, are negligibly affected by the presence of the layer inside the ring.     

Structural properties of ZnS/GaAs epilayers grown by atomic-layer epitaxy

ZnS epilayers were grown on (1 0 0) semi-insulating GaAs substrates using an atmospheric pressure metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique under the atomic-layer epitaxy (ALE) mode. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and photoluminescence (PL) measurements were carried out to find the effect of the II–VI ratio of the 30-nm thick ZnS epilayers and to investigate the thickness-dependent characteristics of ZnS epilayers with the thicknesses of 30 and 100 nm. While the II–VI ratio-dependent ZnS quality is consistent regardless of the measurement, the thickness-dependent epilayer quality is quite contrary depending on the measurement. This difference demonstrates the non-uniform distribution of the strain–relaxation in the ZnS epilayer along the depth.     

Controlled stacking growth of uniform InAs quantum dots by molecular beam epitaxy

Double-stacked InAs quantum dots (QDs) were grown by molecular beam epitaxy via Stranski–Krastanov growth mode. Transition of the facet formation from {1 3 6} plane to {1 1 0} plane was observed during the stacking growth of InAs QDs by reflection high-energy electron-beam diffraction. The enhanced growth rate and the different facet formation in the stacking growth were caused by tensile strain of the GaAs underlying layer. Low arsenic pressure and low growth rate conditions played an important role for a perfect coupling and uniformity in the size of the stacked QDs. The narrow photoluminescence line width of 17.6 meV was successfully obtained from the stacked InAs QDs.     

One-dimensional single (In,Ga)As quantum dot arrays formed by self-organized anisotropic strain engineering

Well-defined one-dimensional single (In,Ga)As quantum dot (QD) arrays have been successfully formed on planar singular GaAs (1 0 0) in molecular beam epitaxy by self-organized anisotropic strain engineering of an (In,Ga)As/GaAs quantum wire (QWR) superlattice (SL) template. The distinct stages of template formation, which govern the uniformity of the QD arrays, are directly imaged by atomic force microscopy (AFM). The AFM results reveal that excess strain accumulation causes fluctuations of the QWR template and the QD arrays. By reducing the amount of (In,Ga)As and increasing the GaAs separation layer thickness in each SL period, the uniformity of the QD arrays dramatically improves. The single QD arrays are straight over more than 1 μm and extended to 10 μm length. Capped QD arrays show clear photoluminescence emission up to room temperature.     

Microstructural properties of GaN grown on a Si(110) substrate by gas-source molecular beam epitaxy: Dependence on the ammonia flux

The microstructural properties of a GaN thin film grown on a Si(110) substrate under various ammonia (NH₃)-flux conditions were observed to study growth mode and defect evolution. The surface flatness of GaN thin films was improved with the increase of the NH₃ flux while the thickness was decreased by increasing the NH₃ flux. In addition, the crystalline quality of the GaN film grown under the lower NH₃ flux (100 sccm) was better than that of the film under the higher NH₃ flux (400 sccm). The different dislocation behaviors depending on NH₃ fluxes were observed; the low density of dislocations was measured and most of dislocations penetrating the thin film was mixed- and edge-type dislocations when GaN was grown under the low NH₃ flux condition while the high density of dislocation and many mixed- and screw-type dislocations penetrating the film were observed in the GaN film grown under the high NH₃ flux. These phenomena are demonstrated by using a kinetic model related to the role of NH₃.     

Structural and morphological properties of thin ZnO films grown by pulsed laser deposition

The pulsed laser deposition technique was used to produce zinc oxide thin films onto silicon and Corning glass substrates. Homogeneous surfaces exhibiting quite small Root Mean Square (RMS) roughness, consisting of shaped grains were obtained, their grain diameters being 40-90 nm at room temperature and at 650 °C growth respectively. Films were polycrystalline, even for growth at room temperature, with preferential crystallite orientation the (0 0 2) basal plane of wurtzite ZnO. Temperature increase caused evolution from grain to grain agglomeration structures, improving crystallinity. Compressive to tensile stresses transition with temperature was found while the lattice constant decreased.     

Annealing effect on InAs islands on GaAs(0 0 1) substrates studied by scanning tunneling microscopy

Post-annealing effects on InAs islands grown on GaAs(0 0 1) surfaces have been investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) connected to molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). It is found that for islands grown by 1.6 ML InAs deposition at 450 °C, post-annealing at 450 °C in an As₄ atmosphere causes dissolving of the InAs islands. In contrast, for larger islands obtained by 2.0 ML InAs deposition at 450 °C, the post-annealing leads to coarsening of the islands. The result can be explained in terms of a critical nucleus in heterogeneous nucleation.     

Initial stages of MnAs/GaAs(0 0 1) epitaxy studied by RHEED azimuthal scans

We study the nucleation phase of molecular beam epitaxy of (hexagonal) MnAs on (cubic) GaAs (0 0 1) using reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) azimuthal scans. The nucleation proceeds from a non-reconstructed initial stage through randomly oriented small nuclei and two orientation stages to the final single-phase epitaxial orientation. The fascinatingly complex nucleation process contains elements of both Volmer-Weber and Stranski-Krastanov growth. The measurement demonstrates the potential of high-resolution RHEED techniques to assess details of the surface structure during epitaxy.     

Controlling anisotropy of GaSb(As)/GaAs quantum dots by self-assembled molecular beam epitaxy

A systematic study was performed to control the geometrical anisotropy of GaSb(As)/GaAs quantum dot structures formed by the Stranski–Krastanov growth mode of molecular beam epitaxy. In particular, effects of both the Sb₄ beam flux and the As₄ background pressure on the geometrical anisotropy were clarified and elongated QDs with lateral aspect ratio greater than 3 were successfully formed. Under a low As₄ background pressure, As₄ is found to act as surfactant to influence the adatom diffusion and change the density of QDs. By contrast, under high As₄ background pressure, the intermixing of As and Sb takes place and reduces strains induced by the lattice mismatch.     

GaAsN/AlAs/AlGaAs double barrier quantum wells grown by molecular beam epitaxy as an alternative to infrared absorption below 4 μm

In this work, we report on the design, growth and characterization of GaAsN/AlAs/AlGaAs double barrier quantum well infrared detectors to achieve intraband absorption below 4 μm. Due to the high effective mass of N-dilute alloys, it is common for these N-containing double barrier quantum well structures to have more than one bound state within the quantum well, enabling the possibility of achieving multispectral absorption from these confined levels to the quasi-bound. Based on a transfer matrix calculation we will study the influence of the potential parameters, in particular the well width and the introduction of a GaAs spacer layer in between the N-well and the AlAs barriers. We will compare the case in which there are two confined levels with the case in which only one level is bound, like in the conventional AlGaAs/AlAs/GaAs structures. On the basis of the simulation, we have grown and characterized some N-containing double barrier detectors. Moreover, an optimization of the post-growth annealing treatments of the GaAsN quantum well structures has also been performed. Finally, room temperature absorption measurements of both as-grown and annealed samples are presented and analyzed.     

Mechanism for coarsening of P-mediated Ge quantum dots during in-situ annealing

The coarsening of phosphorus-mediated Ge quantum dots (QDs) on Si(0 0 1) during in-situ annealing at 550 °C is studied. In-situ annealing makes the as-grown sample morphology be remarkably changed: the larger dots are formed and the dot density is greatly reduced. The results of chemical etching and Raman spectra reveal that the incorporation of Ge atoms which originate from the diminishing dots, rather than substrate Si atom incorporation is responsible for the dot coarsening at the incipient stage of in-situ annealing. Besides, Raman spectra suggest that the larger dots formed during in-situ annealing are dislocated, which was confirmed by cross-sectional high-resolution electron microscopy observation. Through the generation of dislocations, the strain in the dots is relaxed by about 50%.     

Transport properties of a lateral semiconductor quantum dot defined by a single connected metallic front-gate

We present studies on the electric transport in a lateral GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dot defined by a patterned single connected metallic front-gate. This gate design allows to easily couple a large number of quantum dots and therefore holds high potential in the design of new materials with tailor-made band structures based on quantum dot superlattices of controlled shape. Clear Coulomb diamond structures and well pronounced tunneling peaks observed in experiment indicate that single-electron control has been achieved. However, the dependence on electron density in the heterostructure embedding the dot, which is controlled by an additional back-gate, reveals that transport characteristics are strongly influenced supposedly by potential fluctuations in the dot and lead regions.     

Study of post-growth annealing and Ga coverage effects in low-density GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots grown by modified droplet epitaxy

We present a detailed analysis of the Ga coverage and of the post-growth annealing effects on the optical properties of very-low-density self-assembled GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots grown by modified droplet epitaxy. Through theoretical calculation of the QD electronic states, including thermally activated Al–Ga interdiffusion processes, we were able to relate our spectroscopic observations to QD structural properties.     

STEM-study of 1.3 μm InAs/InGaAs quantum dot structures

We investigated InAs-Dots-in-a-well structures emitting near 1.3 μm by bright field and Z-contrast mode in a scanning transmission electron microscope. The chemically sensitive Z-contrast mode is found to give direct information on the actual position of the InAs-Dots inside the embedding well, while the bright field mode monitors the strain fields. Comparing a series of structures, we found that the most symmetric design is realized by an nominally asymmetric growth. These symmetric structures exhibit the best performance with respect to photoluminescence spectra and laser threshold current density.     

An investigation of misfit dislocations in Al on (001) GaAs grown by chemical beam epitaxy

We report a transmission electron microscope study of the morphology and interfacial structure of Aluminium grown on (001) GaAs by chemical beam epitaxy (CBE). The Al grows in islands for all thicknesses deposited, and exhibits four distinct orientation relationships with respect to the substrate. One of these orientation relationships becomes dominant as growth progresses, with (011)_Al parallel to (001)_GaAs. Misfit dislocations can be seen in the interface between this orientation and the substrate with Burgers vector 1/4(110)_GaAs, and a crystallographic analysis shows that these dislocations are associated with interfacial steps of height 1/2[001]_GaAs. In (001)Al on (001)GaAs, the existence of these dislocations has in the past been regarded as evidence for the existence of a rigid-body shift of the Al in the interfacial plane. Using cross-sectional high-resolution TEM, it is shown that this shift is not present in the (011) orientation. The similarity in the microstructure and crystallography of the (001) and (011) orientations leads us to suggest that there is also no shift in (001) Al on (001)GaAs. This is in conflict with previous investigations of this system using a wide variety of techniques.