Excitation intensity dependence of lateral photocurrent in InGaAs/GaAs dot-chain structures

Optical properties of multi-layer In_xGa_1 − xAs/GaAs dot-chain heterostructures are studied by means of lateral photoconductivity (PC). Effects of carrier generation and recombination on the photoresponsivity of deep defects and quantum dot arrays are considered. It is shown that the radiative recombination significantly affects the lateral PC spectra thus leading to a nonlinear dependence of photocurrent on excitation intensity. For ground state excitation of the quantum dots the photocurrent nonlinearities are determined by a competition of both generation and recombination processes which include thermal activation.     

Resonant electron tunneling in (111) GaAs/AlAs structures

Pseudopotential and scattering matrix methods are used to study the spectral details of the transmission of electrons as a function of the angle of incidence on a heterojunction in various structures based on (111) GaAs/AlAs. A simplified two-valley (Γ-L) model for describing the electronic states in such structures has been proposed and its parameters have been determined. The existence of quasilocalized “interfacial” states has been established. A formula has been found which well approximates the behavior of the scattering matrix elements near these resonances, and their decay times are estimated. Academician V. D. Kuznetsov Siberian Physicotechnical Institute at Tomsk State University. Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika No. 9, pp. 89–99, September, 1998.     

Carrier diffusion in InGaAs/GaAs quantum wells grown on vicinal GaAs(0 0 1) substrates

We have investigated the influence of vicinal GaAs substrates on the optical and electronic properties of InGaAs/GaAs quantum wells (QWs). A single In_0.10Ga_0.90As QW was grown by molecular-beam epitaxy on a vicinal GaAs(0 0 1) substrate with a miscut angle of 0° (nominal), 2°, 4° and 6° towards [1 1 0]. The carrier diffusion was obtained by a micro-photoluminescence scan technique that permits to observe the effective diffusion length characterized by the lateral spread of carriers in the QW followed by radiative recombination. The carrier diffusion length was obtained parallel (L_||) and perpendicular (L) to the atomic steps. The diffusion length decreases as the temperature increases up to 100 K. Above this temperature we found different behaviours that depend on the sample miscut angle.     

Carrier spin polarization in ferromagnet-semiconductor (Ga,Mn)As/GaAs structures

The effect of ferromagnetic layers on the spin polarization of holes and electrons in ferromagnet-semiconductor superlattices with a fixed Mn δ-layer thickness of 0.11 nm and different GaAs interlayer thicknesses varying in the range from 2.5 to 14.4 nm and a fixed number of periods (40) is studied by means of hot-electron photoluminescence (HPL). Here, our study of the HPL demonstrates that the holes in δ-layers of (Ga,Mn)As DMS occupy predominantly the Mn acceptor impurity band. The width of the impurity band decreases with the increase of the interlayer distance. We also found that an increase in the GaAs interlayer thickness softens the magnetic properties of the ferromagnetic layers as well as reduces the carrier polarization. It is demonstrated that the hole spin polarization in the DMS layers and spin polarization of electrons in nonmagnetic GaAs are proportional to the sample magnetization.     

Electron tunneling in the GaAs/AlAs(111) structures with a smooth potential at heteroboundaries

The effect of smooth interface potential on the electron tunneling in the GaAs/AlAs(111) structures with thin layers is studied using the pseudopotential method. The transition region between the structure components is represented by a half-period of the hexagonal (GaAs) ₃(AlAs)₃ (111) superlattice. It is shown that the allowance for the smooth potential results in a decrease in the Γ-L-mixing, Fano-resonance narrowing, and disappearance of interface states at the GaAs/AlAs(111) interface as compared to the abrupt-interface model. The shifts of the lowest Γ-and L-resonances observed for the structures with the layer thickness <2 nm amount to ∼0.1 eV, which is in good agreement with the behavior of levels in quantum wells. The transmission coefficient of electrons with the energies 0–0.5 eV above the GaAs conduction-band bottom obtained by multivalley calculation is close to that calculated with allowance for the lowest conduction band states Γ ₁ ⁽¹⁾ and Γ ₁ ⁽²⁾ of superlattice and Γ ₁ and L ₁ of binary crystals. This indicates that a two-valley superlattice model of the smooth GaAs/AlAs(111) interface can be developed. __________ Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 7, pp. 7–13, July, 2007.     

Lateral and vertical ordered one-dimensional InGaAs/GaAs quantum structures

Lateral and vertical ordered one-dimensional quantum structures, i.e. InGaAs/GaAs(001) quantum dot chains and quantum wires, have been obtained using molecular beam epitaxy. It was found that the InGaAs wires or dot chains sit on two-dimensional wetting layers and run along the [-110] direction, as the result of anisotropic strain and in-plane adatom diffusion. This anisotropic nature produces a model system for studying the electronic properties of one-, two-, and three-dimensional quantum confinements and related optical responses. The strain anisotropy is of importance in determining the electronic states of the quantum structures and the surrounding strained barrier. The strain-induced effects, such as change of band-gap and splitting of heavy–light hole states, were studied experimentally and theoretically. Optical anisotropy of these quantum structures is also discussed.     

Emission and elastic strain in InAs dot-in-a well InGaAs/GaAs structures

The paper presents the photoluminescence (PL) study of InAs quantum dots (QDs) embedded in the asymmetric GaAs/In_xGa_1?xAs/In_0.15Ga_0.85As/GaAs quantum wells (QWs) with the different compositions of capping In_xGa_1?xAs layers. The composition of the buffer In_0.15Ga_0.85As layer was the same in all studied QD structures, but the In content (parameter x) in the capping In_xGa_1?xAs layers varied within the range 0.10–0.25. The In concentration (x) increase in the In_xGa_1?xAs capping layers is accompanied by the variation non-monotonously of InAs QD emission: PL intensity and peak positions. To understand the reasons of PL variation, the PL temperature dependences and X ray diffraction (XRD) have been investigated. It was revealed that the level of elastic deformation (elastic strain) and the Ga/In interdiffusion at the In_xGa_1?xAs/InAs QD interface are characterized by the non-monotonous dependences versus parameter x. The physical reasons for the non-monotonous variation of the elastic strains and PL parameters in studied QD structures have been discussed.     

Carrier spin polarization near the Fermi level inn-modulation doped AlGaAs/InGaAs/GaAs quantum well

We studied the carrier-spin polarization in ann-type modulation-doped single quantum well. The sample shows a high electron concentration and the second electron subband is marginally occupied. Photoluminescence and photoluminescence excitation were performed in the continuous-wave regime. The results reveal a polarization profile determined by the hole relaxation. A higher degree of polarization was observed for the luminescence related to the recombination of electrons in the second conduction subband. This suggests that the photo-created electrons localized close to the Fermi level maintain their polarization.     

Excitation energy dependence of the optical properties of InGaAs/GaAs quantum well heterostructures

Il Nuovo Cimento D - We report an experimental study on a large set of InGaAs/GaAs quantum well structures by means of continuous-wave photoluminescence and photoluminescence excitation. The...     

GaAs(111)表面硅烯、锗烯的几何及电子性质研究

基于密度泛函理论的第一性原理计算方法, 系统研究了硅烯、锗烯在GaAs(111) 表面的几何及电子结构. 研究发现, 硅烯、锗烯均可在As-中断和Ga-中断的GaAs(111) 表面稳定存在, 并呈现蜂窝状六角几何构型. 形成能计算结果证明了其实验制备的可行性. 同时发现硅烯、锗烯与GaAs表面存在共价键作用, 这破坏了其Dirac电子性质. 进一步探索了利用氢插层恢复硅烯、锗烯Dirac电子性质的方法. 发现该方法可使As-中断面上硅烯、锗烯的Dirac电子性质得到很好恢复, 而在Ga-中断面上的效果不够理想. 此外, 基于原子轨道成键和杂化理论揭示了GaAs表面硅烯、锗烯能带变化的物理机理. 研究结果为硅烯、锗烯在半导体基底上的制备及应用奠定了理论基础.     

Strain relaxation in InAs/GaAs(111)A heteroepitaxy

We have studied strain-relaxation processes in InAs heteroepitaxy on GaAs(111)A using rocking-curve analysis of reflection high-energy electron diffraction. Strain relaxation in the direction parallel to the surface occurs at approximately 1.5 bilayers (BL) thickness. On the other hand, the lattice constant in the direction normal to the surface remains almost unchanged below approximately 3 BL thickness and is estimated to be approximately 3.3 A. This value, slightly larger than that of bulk GaAs (3.26 A), does not quite reach the value predicted by classical elastic theory, 3.64 A. The present result has been supported by the first-principles total-energy calculations.     

Photoluminescence of InGaAs/GaAs strained-layer quantum well structures under high pressure

Abstract

Measurements of the photoluminescence (PL) of strained In_0.2Ga_0.8As/GaAs and In_0.15Ga_0.85As/GaAs quantum well structures together with the PL from bulk GaAs, in a diamond anvil cell show that the pressure coefficient of the ground confined state in the wells depends upon well width (L_Z). In the thinnest wells, the coefficient is closer to that of the bulk GaAs (10.7 meV/kbar), as expected. However, in the widest wells the coefficients tend to values (9.5meV/kbar for the 15% alloy and 9.1meV/kbar for the 20% alloy) that are significantly lower than the pressure coefficient of unstrained In_0.53Ga_0.47As (10.9meV/kbar). It is found that the low pressure coefficients can not be explained by the change in uniaxial stress with pressure due to a difference in bulk moduli between the barrier and well.     

Thermal interdiffusion in InGaAs/GaAs and GaAsSb/GaAs strained quantum wells as a function of doping density

We studied the thermal stability and interdiffusion of InGaAs/GaAs and GaAsSb/GaAs single quantum wells as a function of temperature for both Be and Si doping at various doping concentrations. The interdiffusion was monitored using the photoluminescence from the ground states of the valence- and conduction-band quantum wells. Using a Green's function method to solve the diffusion equation, assuming Fick's law behaviour, the evolution of the well shape during annealing was determined, and Schrödinger's equation was solved for this well shape to provide the ground-state energy levels of the system using the diffusion constant as the only fitting parameter. The validity of this model as applied to both systems is discussed.Strained Layer Structures Research Group.     

Piezoelectric effects and electronic structures of InAs/GaAs quantum dots grown along (111) and (011) directions

Piezoelectric effects and electronic structures of InAs/GaAs quantum dots grown along (111) and (011) directions are investigated in this paper. The finite element method is used. Electronic energy levels are calculated by solving the three-dimensional effective mass Schr?dinger equation including a strain modified confinement potential and piezoelectric effects. The difference in electronic structure between quantum dots grown along the (111) direction and the (011) direction are compared. The cubic and truncated pyramidal shaped quantum dots are adopted.     

GaAs(111)A/B surface orientation effects on electron density in normal and inverted pseudomorphic HEMTs

We present calculations of the two-dimensional electron density in a Si -doped AlGaAs/InGaAs/GaAs pseudomorphic high electron mobility transistor (P-HEMT), at low temperature, for three different growth directions (001) and (111)A/B. The calculations are made using a self-consistent resolution of Schrödinger and Poisson equations. The presence of a strong built-in piezoelectric field in (111)A/B growth directions causes changes of the confining potential shape and the carrier distribution in the InGaAs channel. We discuss the influence of GaAs substrate orientation on the conduction-band structure and thereafter on the two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) concentration in the channel. Our results show that the calculated 2DEG concentration in the normal P-HEMT structure grown on a (111)A GaAs substrate is significantly higher than those grown on (001) and (111)B GaAs substrates. We also note an increase of the average separation between the ionized donors and the carriers. On the other hand, the GaAs (111)B substrate orientation appears as inadequate for the type of structure (normal P-HEMT) on account of the charge-transfer reduction in the channel compared with the (001) orientation. In contrast, we demonstrate that the calculated 2DEG Si -doped GaAs/InGaAs/AlGaAs pseudomorphic inverted high electron mobility transistor (PI-HEMT) grown on aGaAs (111)B substrate is appreciably higher than that grown on (001) and afterwards an enhancement of the spatial separation between confined electrons in the channel and ionized dopants occurs. These effects might result in considerably improved devices of great interest regarding high electron mobility. PACS 73.20.Dx; 73.20.At; 73.90.+f; 73.63.Hs; 72.20.Dp