Strain effects on optical polarisation properties in (11■2) plane GaN films

We present the theoretical results of the electronic band structure of wurtzite GaN films under biaxial strains in the (11■2)-plane.The calculations are performed by the k · p perturbation theory approach through using the effective-mass Hamiltonian for an arbitrary direction.The results show that the transition energies decrease with the biaxial strains changing from 0.5% to 0.5%.For films of (11■2)-plane,the strains are expected to be anisotropic in the growth plane.Such anisotropic strains give rise to valence band mixing which results in dramatic change in optical polarisation property.The strain can also result in optical polarisation switching phenomena.Finally,we discuss the applications of these properties to the (11■2) plane GaN-based light-emitting diode and lase diode.     

Multilayer Au/TiO2Composite Films with Ultrafast Third-Order Nonlinear Optical Properties

We report on the ultrafast third-order optical nonlinearity in multilayer Au/TiO2 composite films fabricated on quartz substrates by pulsed laser deposition technique. The linear optical properties of the films are determined and optical absorption peaks due to surface plasmon resonance of Au particles are observed at about 590hm. The third-order optical nonlinearities of the films are investigated by z-scan method using a femtosecond laser （50 fs） at the wavelength of 800 nm. The sample showed fast nonlinear optical responses with nonlinear absorption coefficient and nonlinear refractive index being -3.66 × 10^-10 m/W and -2.95 × 10^-17 m^2/W, respectively. The results also show that the nonlinear optical effects increase with the increasing Au concentration in the composite films.     

Effects of Oxygen Vacancy on Optical and Electrical Properties of ZnO Bulks and Nanowires

Based on the generalized gradient approximation （GGA） in density functional theory （DFT） and using the firstprinciple plane wave ultrasoft pseudopotential method, we construct and optimize the structures of intrinsic and oxygen vacancy （Vo） ZnO bulks and nanowires （NWs） in the Castep module. Moreover, the calculation of band structures and the optical properties are carried out. The cMculated results exhibit that the oxygen vacancy exerts a more significant influence on the electronic structures of the ZnO bulks instead of the NWs. What is more, the influences of the Vo on the optical properties are mainly embodied in the ultraviolet region, and the main optical parameters of ZnO bulks and NWs with Vo are anisotropic.     

Anisotropic properties of TaS2

The anisotropic properties of 1T- and 2H-TaS2 axe investigated by the density functional theory within the framework of full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method. The band structures of 1T- and 2H-TaS2 exhibit anisotropic properties and the calculated electronic specific-heat coefficient γ of 2H-TaS2 accords well with the existing experimental value. The anisotropic frequency-dependent dielectric functions including the effect of the Drude term are analysed, where the ε^xx（ω） spectra corresponding to the electric field E perpendicular to the z axis show excellent agreement with the measured results except for the ε1^xx（ω） of 1T-TaS2 below the energy level of 2.6 eV which is due to the lack of the enough CDW information for reference in our calculation. Furthermore, based on the values of optical effective mass ratio P of 1T and 2H phases it is found that the anisotropy in 2H-TaS2 is stronger than that in 1T-TaS2.     

Optical and magnetic properties of porous anodic alumina films embedded with Co nanowires

A simple method to tune the optical properties of porous anodic alumina （PAA） films embedded with Co nanowires （PAA@Co nanocomposite films） is reported in this paper. The films exhibit vivid structural colors and magnetic properties. The optical properties of the films can be effectively tuned by adjusting the thickness of the PAA template. The deposition of Co nanowires greatly increases the color saturation of the PAA films. The theoretical results of the changes in structural color according to the Bragg-Snell formula are consistent with the experimental results. PAA@Co films can be used in many areas, including decoration, display, and multifunctional anti-counterfeiting applications.     

First-Principles Study of Electronic and Optical Properties of Y1-xCaxTiO3 （x=0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75）

The full potential linearized augmented plane wave （FP-LAPW） method with the generalized gradient approximation （GGA） is applied to study the electronic and optical properties of perovskite-type compounds Y1-xCaxTiO3. The lattice parameters, magnetic moment, band structure, density of states and optical conductivity are obtained. The results show that the Ca ion plays an important role in the electronic properties and optical responses. Moreover, the optical properties including the dielectric function, absorption spectrum, extinction coefficient, energy-loss spectrum and refractive index are also discussed.     

Effects of Annealing Temperature on Structural and Optical Properties of ZnO Thin Films

The effects of annealing temperature on the structural and optical properties of ZnO films grown on Si （100） substrates by sol-gel spin-coating are investigated. The structural and optical properties are characterized by x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and photoluminescence spectra. X-ray diffraction analysis shows the crystal quality of ZnO films becomes better after annealing at high temperature. The grain size increases with the temperature increasing. It is found that the tensile stress in the plane of ZnO films first increases and then decreases with the annealing temperature increasing, reaching the maximum value of 1.8 GPa at 700℃. PL spectra of ZnO films annealed at various temperatures consists of a near band edge emission around 380 nm and visible emissions due to the electronic defects, which are related to deep level emissions, such as oxide antisite （OZn）, interstitial oxygen （Oi）, interstitial zinc （Zni） and zinc vacancy （VZn^-）, which are generated during annealing process. The evolution of defects is analyzed by PL spectra based on the energy of the electronic transitions.     

The effects of post-thermal annealing on the optical parameters of indium-doped ZnO thin films

Indium-doped ZnO thin films are deposited on quartz glass slides by RF magnetron sputtering at ambient temper- ature. The as-deposited films are annealed at different temperatures from 400 C to 800 C in air for 1 h. Transmittance spectra are used to determine the optical parameters and the thicknesses of the films before and after annealing using a nonlinear programming method, and the effects of the annealing temperatures on the optical parameters and the thickness are investigated. The optical band gap is determined from the absorption coefficient. The calculated results show that the film thickness and optical parameters both increase first and then decrease with increasing annealing temperature from 400 C to 800 C. The band gap of the as-deposited ZnO:In thin film is 3.28 eV, and it decreases to 3.17 eV after annealing at 400 C. Then the band gap increases from 3.17 eV to 3.23 eV with increasing annealing temperature from 400 C to 800 C.     

Optical properties and microstructure of Ta_2O_5 thin films prepared by oblique angle deposition

Tantalum pentoxide thin films are prepared by oblique angle electron beam evaporation. The influence of flux angle on the surface morphology and microstructure is investigated by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）. The Ta2O5 thin films are anisotropic with highly orientated nanostructure of slanted columns. The porous microstructure of the as-deposited films results in the decrease of effective refractive index and packing density with increasing deposition angle. The anisotropic structure results in optical birefringence. The in-plane birefringence increases with the increase of deposition angle and reaches the maximum of 0.055 at the deposition angle of 70°. Anisotropic microstructure and critical packing density are the two key factors to influence the in-plane birefringence.     

Structural and band tail state photoluminescence properties of amorphous SiC films with different amounts of carbon

Amorphous silicon carbide films are deposited by the plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition technique,and optical emissions from the near-infrared to the visible are obtained.The optical band gap of the films increases from 1.91 eV to 2.92 eV by increasing the carbon content,and the photoluminescence(PL) peak shifts from 1.51 eV to 2.16 eV.The band tail state PL mechanism is confirmed by analysing the optical band gap,PL intensity,the Stocks shift of the PL,and the Urbach energy of the film.The PL decay times of the samples are in the nanosecond scale,and the dependence of the PL lifetime on the emission energy also supports that the optical emission is related to the radiative recombination in the band tail state.     

Optical study of an untwinned single crystal: ab-plane anisotropy

We report on the ab-plane polarized reflectance of an untwinned single crystal over the frequency range from 80 to (10 meV-4 eV) at temperatures between 10 and 300 K. We find a clear anisotropy in the ab-plane optical conductivity above and below , which is very similar to that formerly published data of (M.A. Quijada et al., Z. Phys. B 94, 255 (1994)). We employ both the one-component and two-component analyses to the optical data, which suggest that the normal-state infrared anisotropy of originates not only from the mass anisotropy, but also from the scattering rate anisotropy. Our results provide evidence that the electronic structures within the plane are anisotropic. In the superconducting state, there is a definite ab-plane anisotropy to the far-infrared absorption. This anisotropy could be due either to anisotropy of the superconducting gap or to anisotropy of the mid-infrared component to the conductivity. We also observe the superconducting condensate is anisotropic: The value of the superconducting penetration depth in the a-direction is slightly smaller than that along the b-axis. Received 16 July 1998     

Anisotropy of the dielectric function for wurtzite InN

A -plane InN film grown by molecular beam epitaxy on -plane sapphire substrate with an AlN nucleation layer and a GaN buffer was studied by spectroscopic ellipsometry. The data analysis yields both the ordinary and the extraordinary dielectric tensor components perpendicular and parallel to the optical axis, respectively. Strong optical anisotropy is demonstrated over the whole energy range from 0.72 up to 9.5 eV. The line shapes of the tensor components and the polarisation behaviour are in very good agreement with the results of recently published band structure and dielectric function calculations. Above the band gap, five van Hove singularities are evidenced from the ordinary component, while three are resolved from the extraordinary part. The polarisation dependence below 1 eV can be interpreted in terms of optical selection rules for three energetically split valence bands around the Γ-point of the Brillouin zone, similar to the well known behaviour of wurtzite GaN. This emphasises a band gap of hexagonal InN of about 0.7 eV.     

The etching of a-plane GaN epilayers grown by metal--organic chemical vapour deposition

Morphology of nonpolar (1120) a-plane GaN epilayers on r-plane (1102) sapphire substrate grown by low-pressure metal-organic vapour deposition was investigated after KOH solution etching. Many micron-and nano-meter columns on the a-plane GaN surface were observed by scanning electron microscopy. An etching mechanism model is proposed to interpret the origin of the peculiar etching morphology. The basal stacking fault in the a-plane GaN plays a very important role in the etching process.     

Determination of refractive indices and thickness of absorbing crystalline thin films by using prism coupler

Abstract

An improved method has been implemented to study the refection of optical plane waves from anisotropic and absorbing films. The refection from anisotropic non-absorbing films and from isotropic non-absorbing films can be shown as some special cases. The method in this paper can be applied to almost all kinds of materials involved in optical films and integrated optics studies. Guided waves in the anisotropic and absorbing waveguides are determined, and the prism coupler method is employed to determine refractive indices and thickness of the anisotropic and absorbing films. The results show that when we only couple light beams into films with small effective indices, the effect of the absorption can be neglected.     

Structural and optical investigation of nonpolar α-plane GaN grown by metalben organic chemical vapour deposition on r-plane sapphire by neutron irradiation

Nonpolar (1120) α-plane GaN films are grown by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) on r-plane (1102) sapphire. The samples are irradiated with neutrons under a dose of 1 × 10¹⁵ cm^-2. The surface morphology, the crystal defects and the optical properties of the samples before and after irradiation are analysed using atomic force microscopy (AFM), high resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD) and photoluminescence (PL). The AFM result shows deteriorated sample surface after the irradiation. Careful fitting of the XRD rocking curve is carried out to obtain the Lorentzian weight fraction. Broadening due to Lorentzian type is more obvious in the as-grown sample compared with that of the irradiated sample, indicating that more point defects appear in the irradiated sample. The variations of line width and intensity of the PL band edge emission peak are consistent with the XRD results. The activation energy decreases from 82.5 meV to 29.9 meV after irradiation by neutron.     

First principles calculations for band-gap energy properties of non-polar and semi-polar ternary nitride alloys under in-plane strain

Strain-induced band-gap energies properties of non-polar and semi-polar ternary nitride alloys are investigated by first-principles calculation based on density functional theory. The tensile and compressive strains in non-polar and semi-polar plane of wurtzite structures are analyzed and discussed. From the calculation results, we find that the band-gap energies of both Al_0.5Ga_0.5N and In_0.5Ga_0.5N super-cells under strains in m-plane (1100) are smaller than that in a-plane (1120). In addition, m-plane (1100) Al_0.5Ga_0.5N based optoelectronic device will have more significant shift of emission wavelength than a-plane (1120) and semi-polar plane (1122) with the same strains. The tensile and compressive strains in semi-polar plane have similar magnitude of influence on the emission wavelength of In_0.5Ga_0.5N. The calculations provide a qualitative picture of the strain effects on the band-gap energy.     

Polarised hot electron luminescence in p-GaAs: Electric field effects

Electrons photo-excited to high-energy conduction band states of GaAs exhibit complex energy and momentum distributions determined by the anisotropic valence band structure and the optical matrix elements. In p-type GaAs a fraction of these hot electrons combine with localised acceptor states, producing a hot electron luminescence (HEL) spectrum with a cascade of peaks corresponding to discrete energy losses resulting from LO-phonon emission. The highest peak involves unscattered electrons, and their energy distribution is due to warping of the initial heavy-hole (HH) bands. We report measurements of the line shape of this 0-HH peak, and its polarisation profile which identifies emission from electrons along particular directions. An applied electric field of 1 kV cm⁻¹ distorts the hot electron momentum distribution, and this is reflected in the polarisation profile. These line shapes and profiles, with and without field, are calculated using a computer model incorporating a band structure and optical matrix elements, the effect of electric field being included using a k-broadening model. The data and model are in good quantitative agreement assuming an electron lifetime of 100 fs, and confirm the expected differences in the profiles for different excitation polarisation states and applied field directions.     

p‐type conduction in stacking‐fault‐free m ‐plane GaN

Transport measurements of p‐type m ‐plane GaN films grown on low extended‐defect density, free‐standing m ‐plane (10 0) GaN substrates are presented. No significant anisotropy in in‐plane mobility was found for hole concentrations between 2.45 × 10¹⁷ and 8.7 × 10¹⁸ cm^–3. Since faulted, heteroepitaxial m ‐plane films showed significant anisotropy in electron and hole mobility a microstructural feature with anisotropic distribution (basal plane stacking faults) is discussed as a possible source of anisotropic scattering in non‐polar and semi‐polar films. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

退火对含氮氟非晶碳膜结构及光学带隙的影响

采用射频等离子体增强化学气相沉积法,在不同条件下制备了含氮氟非晶碳膜,着重考察了退火温度对膜结构和光学带隙的影响. 研究发现：在350℃时,膜仍很稳定,当退火温度达到400℃时,其内各化学键的相对含量发生很大的改变. 膜的光学带隙随着退火温度的升高而增大,红外和拉曼光谱分析显示其原因是：退火使得膜内F的相对浓度降低,sp²相对含量升高,导致σ-σ^*带边态密度降低. 关键词： 含氮氟非晶碳膜 退火 光学带隙     

Optical investigation of A-plane ZnO/ZnMgO multiple quantum wells grown by pulsed laser deposition

In this study, we present the optical characteristics of A-plane ZnO/ZnMgO multiple quantum wells (MQWs) with different well widths grown on R-plane sapphire substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The energy gaps of ZnO and ZnMgO have been observed by photoluminescence (PL) and absorption spectra. The electrons confined in the ZnO wells transit from the electron ground sub-band to the heavy-hole ground sub-band (noted as 11H) located at 3.40 and 3.57 eV for the ZnO/ZnMgO MQWs samples with well widths of 5.6 and 1.2 nm, respectively. The strong anisotropic polarization characteristic has been studied by polarization-dependent PL measurements. For comparison, we also calculated the transition energies of different well thicknesses varying from 1 to 6 nm. The theoretical results match quite well with the experimental values and revealing the suitable conduction band offset Q_c=0.6. The temperature dependence of PL spectra is being investigated, in the temperature range between 10 and 300 K.