Anomalous disorder-related phenomena in InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well heterosystems

The influences of InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well (MQW) heterostructures with InGaN/GaN and GaN barriers on carrier confinement were investigated. The degree of disordering over a broad range of temperatures from 20 to 300 K was considered. The optical and electrical properties were strongly influenced by structural and compositional disordering of the InGaN/GaN MQW heterostructures. To compare the degree of disordering we examined the temperature dependence of the luminescence spectra and electrical conductance contingent on the Berthelot-type mechanisms in the InGaN/GaN MQW heterostructures. We further considered carrier transport in the InGaN/GaN disordered systems, probability of carrier tunneling, and activation energy of the transport mechanism for devices with InGaN/GaN and GaN barriers. The optical properties of InGaN/GaN disordered heterosystems can be interpreted from the features of the absorption spectra. The anomalous temperature-dependent characteristics of the disordered InGaN/GaN MQW structures were attributable to the enhancement of the exciton confinement.     

Bandgap tuning of semiconductor quantum well structures using ion implantation

Ion induced QW intermixing using broad area and focused ion beam (FIB) implantation was investigated at low energy (32 and 100 keV respectively) in three different material systems (GaAs/AlGaAs, InGaAs/GaAs, and lattice matched InGaAs/InP). Repeated sequential ion implants and rapid thermal anneals (RTAs) were successful in delivering several times the maximum QW bandgap shift achievable by a single implant/RTA cycle. The effectiveness of broad area high energy implantation (8 MeV As⁴⁺) on QW intermixing was also established for GRINSCH (graded-index separate confinement heterostructure) QW laser structures grown in InGaAs/GaAs. Lastly, preliminary work illustrating the effects of implant temperature and ion current density was carried out for InGaAs/GaAsQWs.     

Operational and design considerations for broad area graded barrier quantum well heterostructure lasers grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition for high power applications

Graded barrier quantum well heterostructure (GBQWH) broad area lasers have been shown to be capable of high power pulsed and cw operation. In this article, we consider several operational characteristics and design issues associated with broad area graded barrier quantum well heterostructure lasers grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. In particular, the effect of junction heating on emission wavelength for cw device operation and the effects of various buffer layer structures on the material properties and device characteristics of GBQWH structures are addressed. Typical results for high power operation of uncoated broad area laser diodes are also outlined.     

The effects of carrier dependant nonlinear gain on quantum well VCSEL characteristics

In this paper, we present a numerical opto-electro-thermal model for studying vertical cavity surface emitting lasers operation. The model is applied to an index-guided structure with an oxide aperture and multiple quantum-wells in active layer. The interdependent process of carrier transport, heat generation and optical field are solved self-consistently using finite difference time domain in cylindrical system. The gain of quantum wells (QWs) is calculated based on the solution of Schrödinger equation considering heavy hole-light hole band-mixing effect. The calculated maximum gain versus injected carriers is fitted by a 3th order polynomial function and used in opto-electro-thermal model. The inclusion of QW maximum gain calculation for constant wavelength in the model allows us to study threshold current value and higher order transverse modes as well as their dependencies on variation of gain and refractive index induced by carrier and heat more accurately than linear gain approximation. The results show a lower threshold current compared with linear gain approximation. For injection current above the threshold, we consider the spatial hole burning, thermal lensing and self focusing effects.     

Operational and design considerations for broad area graded barrier quantum well heterostructure lasers grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition for high power applications

Graded barrier quantum well heterostructure (GBQWH) broad area lasers have been shown to be capable of high power pulsed and cw operation. In this article, we consider several operational characteristics and design issues associated with broad area graded barrier quantum well heterostructure lasers grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. In particular, the effect of junction heating on emission wavelength for cw device operation and the effects of various buffer layer structures on the material properties and device characteristics of GBQWH structures are addressed. Typical results for high power operation of uncoated broad area laser diodes are also outlined.     

Lead salt quantum well diode lasers

Lead-salt diode lasers are useful for spectroscopic applications in the 2.5–30 μm wavelength range. These devices have previously required cryogenic cooling <100 K) for CW operation. The use of quantum well, large optical cavity structures has improved the operating temperatures to 174 K CW (at 4.39 μm) and to 270 K pulsed (at 3.88 μm). These diodes have a single PbTe quantum well with lattice-matched Pb_1?xEu_xSeyTe_1?y confinement layers grown by molecular beam epitaxy. The emission energy shifts have been calculated using a finite square well with nonparabolicity effects included. Initial work has also been done on multiple quantum well lasers. The maximum operating temperatures were comparable to those of single quantum well lasers, with leakage current and possibly Auger recombination limiting device performance.     

High-power quantum well remote junction laser and its electrical noise characteristics

We designed and fabricated new structure lasers, the high-power AlGaAs/GaAs remote junction (RJ) single quantum well (SQW) semiconductor lasers whose p–n junction was separated from the active layer. The RJ lasers showed marked reduction of threshold current during early aging period. This reduction was accompanied by a decrease of non-radiative recombination centers in the active layer. For the RJ SQW lasers, the relation between the low-frequency electrical noise and the lifetime of devices is different from the conventional SQW lasers.     

Double heterojunction lasers and quantum well lasers

The improved technology of compound semiconductor heterojunction preparation has resulted in very reliable CW, room temperature diode lasers for optical information read-out grown on p-type substrates on the one hand and very abrupt double heterojunction diode lasers based on quantum effects on the other hand. The influence of quantization effects on the emission wavelength, the threshold current and its temperature dependence are discussed. A distinction has been made between quantization due to strong magnetic fields giving rise to a one-dimensional electron gas (quantum wire) and quantization resulting from electrostatic and/or compositional changes (quantum well). The double heterojunction as a test structure to study carrier scattering into quantum wells, the phonon participation in the hot carrier relaxation process and optical flux guiding in graded heterojunctions have been emphasized.     

Gain recovery dynamics and photon-driven transport in quantum cascade lasers

Quantum cascade lasers are semiconductor devices based on the interplay of perpendicular transport through the heterostructure and the intracavity lasing field. We employ femtosecond time-resolved pump-probe measurements to investigate the nature of the transport through the laser structure via the dynamics of the gain. The gain recovery is determined by the time-dependent transport of electrons through both the active regions and the superlattice regions connecting them. As the laser approaches and exceeds threshold, the component of the gain recovery due to the nonzero lifetime of the upper lasing state in the active region shows a dramatic reduction due to the onset of quantum stimulated emission; the drift of the electrons is thus driven by the cavity photon density. The gain recovery is qualitatively different from that in conventional lasers due to the superlattice transport in the cascade.     

Instabilities in semiconductor lasers

One of the most relevant problems connected with optical fiber communication is that related to the presence of instabilities in the output of semiconductor lasers. These instabilities appear as nonlinearities in the optical power-current characteristic (kinks) or as dynamics instabilities (self-pulsing). These phenomena more frequently occur in devices without a refractive index profile introduced ad hoc in the junction plane (gain-guided lasers); self-pulsing, in particular, is present in aged lasers. Both of them, however, can appear also in nonaged lasers with lateral confinement of the e.m. field (index-guided lasers). In this paper the principal experimental results obtained studying instability phenomena and the physical mechanisms proposed for their explanation are reported and discussed.     

Carrier transport and its effect on the turn-on delay time in strained GalnAsP/InP multiple quantum well lasers

The effects of carrier transport on turn-on delay time in multiple quantum well lasers were investigated both theoretically and experimentally. By using rate equation analysis with two components of the carrier density inside and outside of the quantum wells, we found that carrier transport caused two important effects: one is the stationary effect of a significant reduction in carrier density in quantum wells; the other is an increase in differential carrier lifetime.As an experimental investigation, compressively strained 1.3 m GalnAsP/InP multiple quantum well (MQW) lasers were fabricated and their turn-on delay times were measured and investigated. The short-cavity buried-heterostructure lasers showed low-threshold current (2 to 3 mA) and small turn-on delay time (<200 ps) at biasless 30 mA pulse current. Although these performances are suitable for high-speed digital transmission, it was found that the carrier lifetimes derived from the turn-on delay measurement were larger for strained quantum well lasers than for conventional quantum well lasers and double heterostructure lasers. These phenomena are explained using the carrier transport model and are discussed. The solutions for further reduction in carrier lifetime and turn-on delay are discussed.     

Low linewidth enhancement factor for InGaAsP and InGaAIAs multiple quantum well lasers

A comparative measurement is reported of the linewidth enhancement factor of bulk and multiple quantum well (MQW) long-wavelength diode lasers using the chirp halfwidth product method. Although MQW lasers provide substantially improved chirp performance compared with bulk devices, this depends considerably on the drive conditions when gain switching.     

Influence of gain saturation and carrier dynamic models on the modulation response of quantum well lasers

The main problem for creation of optical communication systems is how quickly the light intensity can be changed under radiation from a laser diode. The modulation capability of lasers with separate confinement heterostructure depends strongly on carrier transport and gain saturation phenomena. Nonlinear gain saturation model in connection with dynamic behavior at high-frequency modulation is discussed and peculiarities of application of a new dynamic model with partial differential equation for the carrier transport in SCH region are shown.     

Side optical cavity,single quantum well diode laser

Large optical cavity single quantum well PbEuSeTe diode lasers recently attained the highest temperatures yet observed to our knowledge for long wavelength (g > 3)m) diode lasers. Current studies of PbTe/PbEuSeTe quantum wells by transport and luminescence techniques suggest that most of the band edge offset at a PbTe/PbEuSeTe heterojunction is in the valence band. Thus a 3odified, side optical cavity single quantum well structure was grown in which the PbTe quantum well active region was placed at one side of the large optical cavity to maximize the potential barrier and, therefore, limit the electron leakage out of the quantum well. This resulted in the lowest threshold currents we have yet observed in these devices — 10 mA at 80 K and 120 mA (1.6 KA/cm²) at 160 K under CW conditions. This device lased at up to 175 K CW (g = 4.47)m), which is the highest CW lasing temperature that we have observed so far. These results support the finding that the conduction band offset is relatively small in PbTe/PbEuSeTe heterojunctions.     

Proton radiation effects in quantum dot lasers

Proton beams with energies of 10 and 200 MeV were irradiated onto InAs quantum dot lasers with a wavelength of 1.3 μm. The increase in threshold current by proton irradiation was small compared with those of the previously reported other quantum dot lasers with larger active region and 1.3-μm InGaAsP quantum well lasers. These results were discussed by taking account of non-ionizing energy loss and effective volume of active region.     

Electrical Scanning Probe Microscopy: Investigating the Inner Workings of Electronic and Optoelectronic Devices

Semiconductor electronic and optoelectronic devices such as transistors, lasers, modulators, and detectors are critical to the contemporary computing and communications infrastructure. These devices have been optimized for efficiency in power consumption and speed of response. There are gaps in the detailed understanding of the internal operation of these devices. Experimental electrical and optical methods have allowed comprehensive elaboration of input–output characteristics, but do not give spatially resolved information about currents, carriers, and potentials on the nanometer scale relevant to quantum heterostructure device operation. In response, electrical scanning probe techniques have been developed and deployed to observe experimentally, with nanometric spatial resolution, two-dimensional profiles of the electrical resistance, capacitance, potential, and free carrier distribution, within actively driven devices. Experimental configurations for the most prevalent electrical probing techniques based on atomic force microscopy are illustrated with considerations for practical implementation. Interpretation of the measured quantities are presented and calibrated, demonstrating that internal quantities of device operation can be uncovered. Several application areas are examined: spreading resistance and capacitance characterization of free carriers in III-V device structures; acquisition of electric potential and field distributions of semiconductor lasers, nanocrystals, and thin films; scanning voltage analysis on diode lasers—the direct observation of the internal manifestations of current blocking breakdown in a buried heterostructure laser, the effect of current spreading inside actively biased ridge waveguide lasers, anomalously high series resistance encountered in ridge lasers—as well as in CMOS transistors; and free-carrier measurement of working lasers with scanning differential spreading techniques. Applications to emerging fields of nanotechnology and nanoelectronics are suggested.     

Effect of ion implantation on quantum well infrared photodetectors

Ion implantation is a postgrowth processing technique which, when combined with annealing, can be used to tune the absorption wavelength of quantum well devices. We have implanted and annealed, three different quantum well infrared photodetector structures, and measured the absorption spectra of the samples by Fourier transform spectroscopy. The peak absorption wavelength shift of each structure has been calculated as a function of diffusion length by simulating the diffusion processes. We found different diffusion rates for the structures and attribute this to different numbers of as-grown defects. Our results indicate that agglomeration of single defects into defect clusters limits the ability of ion implantation to tune the wavelength of a structure with a higher number of as-grown defects. Thus, a structure with the lowest number of as-grown defects is most useful for fabricating a multi-color quantum well photodetector by ion implantation, because in this case ion implantation can enhance the diffusion rate considerably leading to large red- shift in peak absorption wavelength.     

Improved implanted,planar buried heterostructure lasers through enhanced optical confinement

We fabricated and tested implanted, planar-buried heterostructure, graded-index, separate confinement heterostructure (IPBH-GRINSCH) lasers in various waveguide geometries. These devices were also numerically simulated with a two-dimensional waveguide model. We report improved laser performance that results from a reduced overlap of the optical field with the absorbing regions produced by residual implant damage.     

Analytical and visual modeling of InGaN/GaN single quantum well laser based on rate equations

An analytical, visual and open source model based on solving the rate equations for InGaN/GaN single quantum well (QW) lasers has been carried out. In the numerical computations, the fourth-order Runge–Kutta method has been used for solving the differential rate equations. The rate equations which have been considered in this simulation include the two level rate equations for the well and separate confinement heterostructure (SCH) layers. We present a new and inexpensive modeling method with analytical, visual and open source capabilities to investigate and comprehend the QW laser characteristics such as time behavior of carriers in SCHs and QW, photon density, output power and gain, and also the output power versus current which presents the threshold current of the laser. The characteristics of the QW lasers, which include laser time response (P–t), turn-on delay time of lasing and output power–current (P–I) characteristic and related features such as threshold current and slope efficiency have been investigated. Our model accurately computes the P–t and P–I characteristics such as turn-on delay time, threshold current and slope efficiency, and also illustrates the effects of parameters such as the injection current and geometry.