First-principles calculations of structural and electronic properties of Tl_xGa_(1-x)As alloys

The zincblende ternary alloys Tl_xGa_(1-x) As(0 x 1) are studied by numerical analysis based on the plane wave pseudopotential method within the density functional theory and the local density approximation. To model the alloys,16-atom supercells with the 2 × 2 × 2 dimensions are used and the dependency of the lattice parameter, bulk modulus,electronic structure, energy band gap, and optical bowing on the concentration x are analyzed. The results indicate that the ternary Tl_xGa_(1-x) As alloys have an average band gap bowing parameter of 4.48 eV for semiconductor alloys and 2.412 eV for semimetals. It is found that the band gap bowing strongly depends on composition and alloying a small Tl content with GaAs produces important modifications in the band structures of the alloys.     

The pressure and temperature dependence of electron energy-gaps in semiconductor alloys

The pressure and temperature dependences of the direct energy gaps of semiconductor alloys are calculated using the theory of energy gap bowing of Hill. No adjustable parameters are used, and the pressure and temperature coefficients of the bowing parameter are related to the bulk compressibilities and thermal expansion coefficients respectively. The agreement with the rather small number of experimental results is quite good.The non-linear composition dependence of the pressure coefficients of semiconductor alloys suggests that there are inconsistencies in present formulations of dielectric model theories of alloys.     

Bandgaps and band bowing in semiconductor alloys

The bandgap and band bowing parameter of semiconductor alloys are calculated with a fast and realistic approach. The method is a dielectric scaling approximation that is based on a scissor approximation. It adds an energy shift to the bandgap provided by the local density approximation (LDA) of the density functional theory (DFT). The energy shift consists of a material-independent constant weighted by the inverse of the high-frequency dielectric constant. The salient feature of the approach is the fast calculation of the dielectric constant of alloys via the Green function (GF) of the TB-LMTOs (tight-binding linear muffin-tin orbitals) in the atomic sphere approximation (ASA). When it is applied to highly mismatched semiconductor alloys (HMAs) like Zn Te_xSe_1?x, this method provides a band bowing parameter that is different from the band bowing parameter calculated with the LDA due to the bowing exhibited also by the high-frequency dielectric constant.     

Electronic and optical properties of ZnS x Se1−x alloys

A series of calculations from first principles have been carried out to study structural, electronic, and optical properties of ZnS_xSe_1−x alloys. Our results show that the lattice constant scales linearly with sulfur composition. The imaginary parts of the dielectric function are calculated, which are in good agreement with the experimental data. We have also interpreted the origin of the spectral peaks on the basis of band structure and density of states. Additionally, we find that no bowing effect in the absorption edge is observed, unlike other II-VI semiconductor alloys.      

Band-gap bowing and p-type doping of (Zn,Mg, Be)O wide-gap semiconductor alloys: a first-principles study

Using a first-principles band-structure method and a special quasirandom structure (SQS) approach, we systematically calculate the band gap bowing parameters and p-type doping properties of (Zn, Mg, Be)O related random ternary and quaternary alloys. We show that the bowing parameters for ZnBeO and MgBeO alloys are large and dependent on composition. This is due to the size difference and chemical mismatch between Be and Zn(Mg) atoms. We also demonstrate that adding a small amount of Be into MgO reduces the band gap indicating that the bowing parameter is larger than the band-gap difference. We select an ideal N atom with lower p atomic energy level as dopant to perform p-type doping of ZnBeO and ZnMgBeO alloys. For N doped in ZnBeO alloy, we show that the acceptor transition energies become shallower as the number of the nearest neighbor Be atoms increases. This is thought to be because of the reduction of p-d repulsion. The N_O acceptor transition energies are deep in the ZnMgBeO quaternary alloy lattice-matched to GaN substrate due to the lower valence band maximum. These decrease slightly as there are more nearest neighbor Mg atoms surrounding the N dopant. The important natural valence band alignment between ZnO, MgO, BeO, ZnBeO, and ZnMgBeO quaternary alloy is also investigated.     

A hybrid functional first-principles study on the band structure of non-strained Ge_(1-x)Sn_x alloys

Using hybrid-functional first-principles calculation combined with the supercell method and band unfolding technique we investigate the band structure of non-strained Ge_(1-x)Sn_x alloys with various Sn concentrations. The calculations show that at the Sn concentration of ～ 3.1 mol% the Ge Sn alloy presents a direct band gap. The variation of the band structure are ascribed to the weaker electro-negativity of Sn atoms and a slight charge transfer from Sn atoms to Ge atoms.     

Imposing changes of band and spin–orbit gaps in GaNBi

We present first-principles pseudopotential plane-wave calculations to explore the effects of alloying of non conventional III–V compound GaN with bismuth. We found a highly nonlinear reduction of the energy gap of GaN for small Bi composition. Consequently the optical band gap bowing is found extremely important and composition dependent. The stronger contribution is due principally to structural and, to less extent, to charge transfer effects. Moreover, because of strong relativistic effects caused by bismuth, we found a giant bowing for the spin–orbit splitting energy of valence band, by far the largest of any III–V ternary alloys.     

Density functional theory analysis of electronic structure and optical properties of La-doped Cd_2SnO_4 transparent conducting oxide

The electronic structural, effective masses of carriers, and optical properties of pure and La-doped Cd_2SnO_4 are calculated by using the first-principles method based on the density functional theory. Using the GGA+U method, we show that Cd_2SnO_4 is a direct band-gap semiconductor with a band gap of 2.216 eV, the band gap decreases to 2.02 e V and the Fermi energy level moves to the conduction band after La doping. The density of states of Cd_2SnO_4 shows that the bottom of the conduction band is composed of Cd 5 s, Sn 5 s, and Sn 5 p orbits, the top of the valence band is composed of Cd 4d and O 2p, and the La 5 d orbital is hybridized with the O 2 p orbital, which plays a key role at the conduction band bottom after La doping. The effective masses at the conduction band bottom of pure and La-doped Cd_2SnO_4 are 0.18 m0 and 0.092 m_0, respectively, which indicates that the electrical conductivity of Cd_2SnO_4 after La doping is improved. The calculated optical properties show that the optical transmittance of La-doped Cd_2SnO_4 is 92%, the optical absorption edge is slightly blue shifted, and the optical band gap is increased to 3.263 eV. All the results indicate that the conductivity and optical transmittance of Cd_2SnO_4 can be improved by doping La.     

Be-composition effect on structure, electronic and optical properties of BexZn1-xO alloys

This paper carries out first principles calculation of the structure,electronic and optical properties of Be x Zn 1 x O alloys based on the density-functional theory for the compositions x = 0.0,0.25,0.5,0.75,1.0.The lattice constants deviations of alloys obey Vegard’s law well.The Be x Zn 1 x O alloys have the direct band gap(Γ-Γ) character,and the bowing coefficients are less than the available theoretical values.Moreover,it investigates in detail the optical properties(dielectric functions,absorption spectrum and refractive index) of these ternary mixed crystals.The obtained results agree well with the available theoretical and experimental values.     

The effect of the violation of Vegard's law on the optical bowing in Si1 − xGex alloys

The effect of the deviation of the lattice parameters from Vegard's rule on the optical bowing of the fundamental gap in Si_{1 − x}Ge_x semiconductor alloys is discussed. Our computations are based on the pseudopotential method. To make allowance for the chemical disorder, the virtual-crystal approximation is used, including a correction to the alloy potential. Our results show that the bowing parameter is highly improved when the lattice relaxation effect is included which indicates the importance of the lattice mismatch in the electronic band structure calculations of IV-IV semiconductor alloys.     

Ultraviolet band edge photorefractivity in LiNbO3:Sn crystals

The ultraviolet (UV) band edge photorefractivity of Sn-doped LiNbO(3) (LN:Sn) at 325 nm has been investigated. A sharp decrease of beam distortion, which is accompanied by a significant increase in the photoconductivity, is observed in LN:Sn crystals with Sn-doping concentrations at or above 2.0 mol%. The diffraction efficiency, the holographic recording sensitivity and response rate, and the two-wave coupling gain coefficient are greatly enhanced when the Sn-doping concentration reaches 2.0 mol% or more. Unlike LiNbO(3) doped with Hf in which the UV gratings can be erased easily by a red beam, the UV gratings in LN:Sn can withstand long-term red beam illumination. Electrons are determined to be the dominant light-induced charge carriers responsible for the UV band edge photorefraction. The observed enhancement on the UV band edge photorefractivity is found to be associated with the showup of an absorption band around 325 nm in LN:Sn crystals with Sn-doping concentrations at or above 2.0 mol%.     

四面体键半导体合金LMTO能带的相干势近似计算

本文提出一种无须引入可调参数的基于LMTO能带的相干势近似(CPA)计算方法。在LMTO及其虚晶近似计算中,哈密顿矩阵的矩阵元计及原子球的d态,哈密顿矩阵对角化时忽略d带对s,p能带的影响,所得能带本征态便于构成适用于CPA计算的sp杂化正交轨道且能带结构较为合理。以Ga_1-xAl_xAs为例,论证这一方法在四面体键半导体合金中的应用。计算结果表明,其重要能带及相应带隙的弯曲参数的CPA修正值是合理的。 关键词：     

Prediction of Γ-L and L-X crossovers in Ga<Subscript>x</Subscript>Al<Subscript>1-x</Subscript>Sb alloys by empirical pseudopotential method

Using empirical pseudopotential method Γ-L crossover is found for the Ga_0.74Al_0.26Sb. The conduction band minimum is observed to switch at the (0.87, 0, 0) point for Ga_0.51Al_0.49Sb which shifts to the X point for Ga_0.21Al_0.79Sb and remains at X leading finally to indirect band gap in AlSb. Band structure calculations for a large number of alloys are performed and bowing parameters b_X and b_L are proposed for the E_X and E_L respectively. Our findings may serve as directive to select the materials in a range of composition to examine the bowing parameters and thereby effective mass experimentally for the Ga_xAl_1-xSb alloys.     

Sn doping effects on the electro-optical properties of sol gel derived transparent ZnO films

Undoped and tin (Sn) doped ZnO films have been deposited by sol gel spin coating method. The Sn/Zn nominal volume ratio was 1, 3 and 5% in the solution. The effect of Sn incorporation on structural and electro-optical properties of ZnO films was investigated. All the films have polycrystalline structure, with a preferential growth along the ZnO (002) plane. The crystallite size was calculated using a well-known Scherrer's formula and found to be in the range of 26-16 nm. X-ray diffraction patterns of the films showed that Sn incorporation leads to substantial changes in the structural characteristics of ZnO films. The SEM measurements showed that the surface morphology of the films was affected from the Sn incorporation. The highest average optical transmittance value in the visible region was belonging to the undoped ZnO film. The optical band gap and Urbach energy values of these films were determined. The absorption edge shifted to the lower energy depending on the Sn dopant. The shift of absorption edge is associated with shrinkage effect. The electrical conductivity of the ZnO film enhanced with the Sn dopant. From the temperature dependence of conductivity measurements, the activation energy of ZnO film increased with Sn incorporation.     

First-principles calculations of structural,electronic and thermal properties of Zn1−x Mg x S ternary alloys

Structural, electronic and thermal properties of Zn_1?x Mg _x S ternary alloys are studied by using the full potential-linearized augmented plane wave method (FP-LAPW) within the density functional theory (DFT). The Wu-Cohen generalized gradient approximation (WC-GGA) is used in this approach for the exchangecorrelation potential. Moreover, the modified Becke-Johnson approximation (mBJ) is adopted for band structure calculations. The dependence of the lattice constant, bulk modulus and band gap on the composition x showed that the first exhibits a small deviation from the Vegard’s law, whereas, a marginal deviation of the second from linear concentration dependence (LCD). The bowing of the fundamental gap versus composition predicted by our calculations agrees well with the available theoretical data. The microscopic origins of the gap bowing are explained by using the approach of Zunger and co-workers. Thermal effects on some macroscopic properties of Zn_1?x Mg _x S alloys are also investigated using the quasi-harmonic Debye model, in which the phononic effects are considered. As, this is the first quantitative theoretical prediction of the thermal properties of Zn_1?x Mg _x S alloys, no other calculated results and furthermore no experimental studies are available for comparison.     

Computational investigations of the band structure and thermodynamic properties of calcium-doped BaS using the FP-LAPW approach

In this work, the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave (FP-LAPW) method was used to calculate the structural, electronic, thermal and thermodynamic properties of BaS and CaS compounds and their ternary mixtures, Ba_1?xCa_xS. The local-density approximation (LDA), the Wu-Cohen generalized gradient approximation (WC-GGA) and the Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof generalized gradient approximation (PBE-GGA) were used as the exchange-correlation potential. Moreover, the modified Becke–Johnson approximation was also used for the band structure calculations. We examined the composition effect on the lattice constants, bulk modulus and band gap. The microscopic origins of the band gap bowing were characterized in detail using the approach of Zunger and colleagues. Pressure and temperature effects on the lattice parameter, heat capacity, Debye temperature, Grüneisen parameter, and thermal expansion coefficient were predicted using the quasi-harmonic Debye model. The thermodynamic stability of these alloys was investigated by calculating the excess enthalpy of mixing, ?H_m, and the phase diagram. It was shown that these alloys are stable at high temperature.     

InGaAsSb四元合金材料禁带宽度的计算方法

讨论了计算In Ga As Sb四元合金材料禁带宽度常用的Glisson方法和Moon方法,比较了它们的计算结果.将两者化成相同形式下的等价公式后发现,二者都只考虑了Γ点带隙弯曲因子对禁带宽度的影响.通过考虑自旋轨道分裂带对价带的影响,提出一种将自旋轨道分裂带弯曲因子引入计算In Ga As Sb禁带宽度的新方法.研究结果表明,该方法计算结果的准确性要优于两种常见的方法.     

Linear and Nonlinear Optical Properties of Spherical Quantum Dots:Effects of Hydrogenic Impurity and Conduction Band Non-Parabolicity

Simultaneous effects of an on-center hydrogenic impurity and band edge non-parabolicity on intersubband optical absorption coefficients and refractive index changes of a typical GaAs/Al x Ga 1 x As spherical quantum dot are theoretically investigated,using the Luttinger-Kohn effective mass equation.So,electronic structure and optical properties of the system are studied by means of the matrix diagonalization technique and compact density matrix approach,respectively.Finally,effects of an impurity,band edge non-parabolicity,incident light intensity and the dot size on the linear,the third-order nonlinear and the total optical absorption coefficients and refractive index changes are investigated.Our results indicate that,the magnitudes of these optical quantities increase and their peaks shift to higher energies as the influences of the impurity and the band edge non-parabolicity are considered.Moreover,incident light intensity and the dot size have considerable effects on the optical absorption coefficients and refractive index changes.     

The response of temperature and hydrostatic pressure of zinc-blende GaxIn1-xAs semiconducting alloys

<正>The electronic band structure of Ga_xIn_1-xAs alloy is calculated by using the local empirical pseudo-potential method including the effective disorder potential in the virtual crystal approximation.The compositional effect of the electronic energy band structure of this alloy is studied with composition x ranging from 0 to 1.Various physical quantities such as band gaps,bowing parameters,refractive indices,and high frequency dielectric constants of the considered alloys with different Ga concentrations are calculated.The effects of both temperature and hydrostatic pressure on the calculated quantities are studied.The obtained results are found to be in good agreement with the available experimental and published data.     

Electronic, magnetic and transport properties of Co2TiZ (Z=Si, Ge and Sn): A first-principle study

We have studied the electronic structure, magnetic and transport properties of some Co based full Heusler alloys, namely Co₂TiZ (Z=Si, Ge and Sn), in the frame work of first-principle calculations. The calculations show that Co₂TiZ (X=Si, Ge and Sn) are to be half-metallic compounds with a magnetic moment of 2 μ_B, well consistent with the Slater-Pauling rule. The electronic structure results reveal that Co₂TiZ has the high density of states at the Fermi energy in the majority-spin state and show 100% spin polarization. Our results also suggest that both the electronic and magnetic properties in these compounds are intrinsically related to the appearance of the minority-spin gap. The origin of energy gap in the minority-spin states is discussed in terms of the electron splitting of Z (Z=Si, Ge and Sn) and 3d Co atoms and also the d-d hybridization between the Co and Ti atoms. The transport properties of these materials are discussed on the basis of Seebeck coefficients, electrical conductivity coefficients and thermal conductivity coefficients.