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.     

The effect of post‐growth thermal annealing on the emission spectra of GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots grown by droplet epitaxy

We fabricated GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots by droplet epitaxy, and obtained the geometries of the dots by scanning transmission electron microscopy. Post‐growth thermal annealing is essential for the optical activation of quantum dots grown by droplet epitaxy. We measured the emission energy shifts of the dots and the underlying superlattice by post‐ growth thermal annealing, and specified the emission from dots by selectively etching the structure down to a low layer of quantum dots. We studied the influence of the degree of annealing on the optical properties of the dots from the peak shifts of the superlattice, since the superlattice has a uniform and well‐defined geometry. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Improvement of color-rendering characteristics of white light emitting diodes by using red quantum dot films

Red quantum dot (QD) films were applied to a conventional white light-emitting-diodes (LEDs) module consisting of 72 LEDs for improving color-rendering properties. Total three QD films with different QD concentrations, two diffuser plates, and six optical configurations were combined and investigated to find an optimized optical structure. QD films formed a red peak near 630 nm in the spectrum which significantly increased the overall color rendering index (CRI). The lateral optical cavity formed by a vertical QD wall and the vertical cavity formed by the diffuser plate and the reflection film in the lighting module played an important role in the improvement of the color-rendering properties. Especially, the adoption of the lateral optical cavity formed by the QD wall was an effective way to improve both efficiency and color rendering properties of the LED lighting. The present result suggests a new possibility of designing high-CRI LED light sources whose color properties can be tuned easily by simply applying and relocating QD components in conventional LED lightings.     

Investigation of various optical transitions in GaAs/Al0.3Ga0.7As double quantum ring grown by droplet epitaxy

This work examines the optical transitions of a GaAs double quantum ring (DQR) embedded in Al_0.3Ga_0.7As matrix by photoreflectance spectroscopy (PR). The GaAs DQR was grown by droplet epitaxy (DE). The optical properties of the DQR were investigated by excitation‐intensity and temperature‐dependent PR. The various optical transitions were observed in PR spectra, whereas the photoluminescence (PL) spectrum shows only the DQR and GaAs band emissions. The various optical transitions were identified for the GaAs near‐band‐edge transition, surface confined state (SCS), DQR confined state, wetting layer (WL), spin–orbital split (E_GaAs + Δ_o), and AlGaAs band transition. PR spectroscopy can identify various optical transitions that are invisible in PL. The PR results show that the GaAs/AlGaAs DQR has complex electronic structures due to the various interfaces resulting from DE.     

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.     

Study of the wurtzite zinc-blende mixed-structured GaAs nanocrystals grown on Si (111) substrates

The structure and growth mechanism of GaAs nanocrystals grown on Si (111) substrates by using the molecular beam epitaxy method have been studied using transmission electron microscopy. The isolated nanocrystals had hexangular shapes, with aspect ratio ～1 and high symmetry. The crystal structure of the GaAs nanocrystals contains a mixture of a stable state of zinc-blende and a metastable state of wurtzite. A number of thin wurtzite layers parallel to the Si (111) plane are introduced into the zinc-blende GaAs nanocrystals as stacking faults. Formation of partial dislocations near the GaAs/Si interface and the small difference in the Gibbs free energy between the zinc-blende and wurtzite structures could cause formation of wurtzite as stacking faults in the zinc-blende structure     

Influence of Ga coverage on the sizes of GaAs quantum dash pairs grown by high temperature droplet epitaxy

We investigate the formation of GaAs quantum dash pairs with different coverages by droplet epitaxy. The GaAs quantum dash pairs of various sizes are fabricated by high temperature droplet epitaxy. Dual‐sized quantum dash pairs are observed along $[01\bar 1]$ orientation. Depending on the Ga cov‐ erage, the width of the quantum dash pairs can be tuned from ～100 nm to ～300 nm while keeping the height in the range of 4 nm to 10 nm. The coverage dependence of quantum dash pairs is also confirmed with photoluminescence measurement. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

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.     

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.     

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.     

InN量子点的液滴外延及物性表征

由于1. 55μm波段广泛应用于通信领域,为了探索不同生长温度对InN量子点的形貌影响,并且实现自组装InN量子点在1. 55μm通信波段的发光,对InN量子点的液滴外延及物性进行了相关研究。首先利用射频等离子体辅助分子束外延(PA-MBE)技术在GaN模板上,采用液滴外延方法在3种温度下生长了InN量子点结构。生长过程中靠反射高能电子衍射(RHEED)对样品进行原位监控。原子力显微镜(AFM)表征结果表明随着生长温度升高,量子点尺寸变大,密度减小。在生长温度350℃和400℃下,观测到了量子点;当温度高于450℃时,未观测到InN量子点。当生长温度为400℃时,量子点形貌最好,密度为6×10~8/cm~2,对400℃下生长的InN量子点进行了变温PL测试,成功得到InN量子点在1. 55μm波段附近的光致发光,并且随着测试温度的升高,量子点的发光峰位发生了先红移后蓝移最后又红移的S型曲线变化,这种量子点有望在未来应用于量子通信领域。     

Al/GaAs表面量子阱界面层的原位光调制反射光谱研究

用分子束外延（MBE）方法在GaAs表面量子阱上外延生长不同厚度的Al层，以超高真空下的原位光调制光谱（PR）作为测量手段，研究Al扩散形成的表面势垒层对于GaAs表面量子阱中带间跃迁峰位和峰形的影响.根据跃迁峰的变化，采用有效质量近似理论计算出了Al和GaAs 的互扩散长度为0.5nm，这是半导体工艺中的一个重要常数. 关键词： Al GaAs 原位光调制反射光谱（PR） 分子束外延（MBE）     

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.