Optical investigation of the relaxation process in InGaAs/GaAs single strained quantum wells grown on (001) and (111)B GaAs substrates

Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) growth of a series of Single Strained Quantum Wells (SSQWs) of InGaAs/GaAs with indium content ranging from 10% to 35% and 100 Å well thickness was performed on (001) and (111)B GaAs substrates under optimized growth conditions for simultaneous growth. The Critical Layer Thickness (CLT) of the heterostructures grown on both substrates was comparatively studied by low temperature Photoluminescence (PL). Relaxation is readily observed in the structures grown on (001) GaAs for 24% In-content. This value is in close agreement with both a calculation of the excess strain associated with the two Matthews and Blakeslee strain relieving dislocation mechanisms and the onset of three-dimensional growth. By contrast, heterostructures grown on (111)B GaAs remain pseudomorphic for In-contents above 25%. A maximum PL peak wavelength of 1.1 microns at room temperature has been reached under the growth conditions used. This would correspond to an In-content around 31%. The study shows that (111)B is a preferable choice of substrate orientation for the growth of InGaAs/GaAs heterostructures for optoelectronic applications at wavelengths beyond 1 μm.     

Spontaneous emission study of (111) InGaAs/GaAs quantum well lasers

Spontaneous emission spectra of (111) and (100) InGaAs/GaAs QW lasers with high In content are measured up to high injection levels and compared with the theoretical results of our own model. Piezoelectric effects are investigated in (111) devices, finding significant contribution of forbidden transitions and a strong blue shift due to carrier screening of piezoelectric field. Band gap renormalization (BGR) in (111) QW lasers is estimated from the measured broadening of the low energy side of the spectrum comparing with model, and corrected by a fundamental band edge. It is also theoretically calculated, including screening effects of the coulomb interaction, in order to explain the estimated results. BGR is found to be higher in (111) samples than in (100) ones, the difference being mainly due to the hole contribution.     

Piezoelectric field measurements by photoreflectance in strained InGaAs/GaAs structures grown on polar substrates

Photoreflectance (PR) measurements were performed on specific structures grown by molecular-beam epitaxy on different substrate orientations: 111B, 111B 2° off, 111A and 100. A strained In_0.2Ga_0.8As quantum well was grown in the space charge layer of an undoped GaAs layer. On a polar substrate orientation 111, the strain-induced piezoelectric field in the quantum well modifies the field in the space charge layer. PR spectra recorded in such structures exhibit Franz Keldysh oscillations from which we can measure the internal electric field. The piezoelectric field is then deduced from a comparison between two structures differing only by the presence of the strained quantum well. Experimental values ranged between 110 kV/cm and 150 kV/cm, and were used to determine experimentally the piezoelectric constant e₁₄ in In_0.2Ga_0.8As.     

Piezoelectric field determination in strained InGaAs quantum wells grown on [111]B GaAs substrates by differential photocurrent

The measurement of the differential photocurrent (DP) generated in PIN GaAs diodes with embedded strained InGaAs quantum wells has allowed us to determine the fields both in the GaAs barriers, as well as in the InGaAs strained quantum wells. Based on an electroreflectance (ER) setup, this technique relies on the generated photocurrent and does not require detection of the reflected light. The field in the GaAs barriers is obtained from DP Franz–Keldysh oscillations at photon energies above the GaAs bandgap, while the piezoelectric field in the wells is deduced from a phase change in the DP spectra under flat-band conditions in the quantum wells (QW). With optical power illuminations of a few nW, the in-well screening in these structures becomes negligible. With just 35 mV_RMS of modulating signal added to the diode bias and without photovoltaic effects due to the bias control of the sample, uncertainties in field calculations are reduced. The piezoelectric field values obtained at room temperature in MQW structures with 10 wells of 12 and 18% In content are close to those obtained by similar related techniques. For higher In content (20, 25 and 30%), single quantum well structures were used, also allowing the confirmation of pyroelectric behavior of the structures. Besides, direct comparisons of simultaneously grown [100] and [111] samples clearly reveal the earlier relaxation of the first ones when their QW absorption feature disappears.     

Time-resolved photoluminescence study of InGaAs/GaAs quantum wells on (111)B GaAs substrates

The exciton dynamics in In_0.15Ga_0.85As/GaAs quantum wells grown on (111)B and (100) GaAs substrates are studied by the time-resolved photoluminescence (PL). We have found that the piezoelectric fields in (111)B samples affect the transient behavior of PL spectra. Compared with the reference (100) samples, we have confirmed that the piezoelectric effect induces slower exciton relaxation in (111)B strained quantum wells.     

Growth of pseudomorphic InGaAs/GaAs quantum wells on [111]B GaAs for strained layer, piezoelectric, optoelectronic devices

Pseudomorphically strained InGaAs/GaAs quantum wells grown on [111]B oriented GaAs substrates incorporate strong piezoelectric fields. Quantum confined interband optical transitions exhibit built-in Stark shifts to the red and additional, ‘forbidden’ transitions are observed because of the reduced symmetry. The novel properties of these structures can be exploited in such devices as electro-optic modulators with increased sensitivity, blue-shifting self electro-optic effect devices (SEEDs) with enhanced contrast, all-optical symmetric SEEDs (SSEEDs) and pseudomorphic high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) with increased two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) densities. At all stages of research, development and production successful device work necessitates reliable material growth of good crystalline quality. High quality material is routinely obtained for wafers misoriented towards 2 . For substrates misoriented towards the 2 direction good quality material can also be achieved, but only when great care is taken to ensure that growth is carried out within the narrower optimum growth window. With the help of this understanding we have been able to produce devices which have been used successfully to observe the predicted improvements.     

Structural characterization of InGaAs/InAlAs quantum wells grown on 0 (111)-InP substrates

Recent studies on HEMT structures according to their growth orientation have attracted much interest from the viewpoint of physics and novel device applications. However, the optimization of their properties needs a high degree of crystalline quality. In this work, the structural characteristics of the layers present on InGaAs/InAlAs HEMT structures grown on (111)-InP substrates have been analyzed by atomic force and transmission electron microscopies. The presence of a strained quantum well induces a defect structure and surface morphology quite different from those observed in similar samples without the quamtum well. These results show that an accurate control of the growth conditions is necessary to obtain acceptable structural quality for (111) devices.     

Influence of substrate misorientation on the optical and structural properties of InGaAs/GaAs single strained quantum wells grown on (111)B GaAs by molecular beam epitaxy

A series of InGaAs/GaAs Single Strained Quantum Wells (SSQWs) with indium content ranging from 25% to 35% and 100 Å well thickness were grown on two different (111)B GaAs off-axis substrates under optimized growth conditions for simultaneous growth. Optoelectronic properties were studied in terms of low temperature photoluminescence (PL). Results indicate a PL emission dependence with the substrate used, this dependence being stronger for highly strained systems. In order to determine the source of this dependence, samples were studied by Planar View Transmission Electron Microscopy (PVTEM). Relaxation mechanisms seem to act in a different way regarding the misoriented substrate used. Although previous theoretical results have already reported this dependence, this is the first direct evidence of this phenomenon for SSQWs. The results of these two different techniques will be compared and discussed.     

Cathodoluminescence study of AlGaAs/GaAs multilayers grown on ridge-type triangles on GaAs (111)A substrates

We have studied the cathodoluminescence of AlxGa1-xAs/GaAs multilayers grown on ridge-type triangles by molecular beam epitaxy. The compositional variation of Al, as well as the distribution of impurity and/or defect, was revealed by variations in the cathodoluminescence spectra and images. The Al composition in an AlxGa1-xAs layer was highest in the (111)A facet and decreased in the order (100), (411)A, (111)-delta and (110) facets. On the other hand, the carbon concentration was highest in the (411)A facet and decreased in the order (111)A, (111)-delta, (100) and (110) facets. It should be noted that the (111)-delta facet has a significant effect on the redistribution of Al. Although our ridge-type triangles are rather large for the quantum structures, these data have elucidated the self-organization mechanism of the AlxGa1-xAs/GaAs system and have yielded information on the design of quantum structures. We conclude that cathodoluminescence observation is a powerful tool for studying the compositional variation or band structure of three-dimensional microscale or nanoscale construction.     

Characterisation of strained (111)B InGaAs/GaAs quantum well lasers with intracavity optical modulator

We have studied InGaAs/GaAs quantum well (QW) lasers with an intracavity saturable absorber grown on (111)B GaAs. The effect of the built-in piezoelectric field, resulting from strained growth, on the gain/absorption spectra is modelled theoretically and measured experimentally. With the piezoelectric field opposing and exceeding the intrinsic field in our structure an externally applied reverse bias can be used to change the net-field in the well from forward to reverse via the flat-band condition. Changing the field in the QW of the passive section influences its absorptive behaviour, changing the light output characteristics. Large hysteresis loops in the light output versus current relation are observed which can be tailored by the applied bias. Additionally, the change in absorption with applied bias provides the possibility of integrated amplitude modulation, avoiding the direct modulation of the active section. An extinction ratio of −11 dB was measured when changing the bias at the absorber by 1 V.     

Structural and photoluminescence properties of low-temperature GaAs grown on GaAs(100) and GaAs(111)A substrates

Undoped, uniformly Si-doped, and δ-Si-doped GaAs layers grown by molecular-beam epitaxy on (100)- and (111)A-oriented GaAs substrates at a temperature of 230°C are studied. The As₄ pressure is varied. The surface roughness of the sample is established by atomic-force microscopy; the crystal quality, by X-ray diffraction measurements; and the energy levels of different defects, by photoluminescence spectroscopy at a temperature of 79 K. It is shown that the crystal structure is more imperfect in the case of GaAs(111)A substrates. The effect of the As₄ flux during growth on the structure of low-temperature GaAs grown on different types of substrates is shown as well.     

Metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy growth and properties of GaAs/AlGaAs and InGaAs/GaAs quantum well structures on (111)A GaAs substrates

We review the recent advances in the fabrication and properties of GaAs/AlGaAs and InGaAs/GaAs quantum well (QW) structures grown on (111)A GaAs substrates by atmospheric pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE). We show that a 25-period GaAs/AlGaAs multi-QW (MQW) structure was fabricated with good crystal quality, high photoluminescence (PL) emission intensity and monolayer (ML) interfacial roughness. A PL full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 10.5 meV was achieved for a 25-period MQW with a well width of 44 Å. This is the narrowest linewidth reported to date for any similar structures grown on (111)A or B substrates by any growth technique. We also report the properties of an InGaAs/GaAs single quantum well structure grown on (111)A GaAs. For this structure, the PL FWHM value was 9.1 meV, corresponding to a 1 ML interfacial roughness for a well width of 41 Å. This is the first demonstration of an InGaAs/GaAs quantum well structure grown on (111)A or (111)B GaAs by MOVPE.     

Self-organization phenomenon of strained InGaAs on InP (311) substrates grown by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy

We have demonstrated that a self-organization phenomenon occurs in strained InGaAs system on InP (311) substrates grown by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. This suggests that a similar formation process of nanocrystals exists not only on the GaAs (311)B substrate but also on the InP (311)B substrate. However, the ordering and the size homogeneity of the self-organized nanocrystals are slightly worse than those of the InGaAs/AlGaAs system on the GaAs (311)B substrate. The tensilely strained condition of a InGaAs/InP system with growth interruption in a PH₃ atmosphere reveals a surface morphology with nanocrystals even on the InP (100) substrate. It was found that strain energy and high growth temperature are important factors for self-organization on III-V compound semiconductors. Preliminary results indicate that the self-organized nanostructures in strained InGaAs/InP systems on InP substrates exhibit room temperature photoluminescent emissions at a wavelength of around 1.3 p.m.     

Stimulated emission in heterostructures with double InGaAs/GaAsSb/GaAs quantum wells,grown on GaAs and Ge/Si(001) substrates

We report the observation of stimulated emission in heterostructures with double InGaAs/GaAsSb/GaAs quantum wells, grown on Si(001) substrates with the application of a relaxed Ge buffer layer. Stimulated emission is observed at 77 K under pulsed optical pumping at a wavelength of 1.11 μm, i.e., in the transparency range of bulk silicon. In similar InGaAs/GaAsSb/GaAs structures grown on GaAs substrates, room-temperature stimulated emission is observed at 1.17 μm. The results obtained are promising for integration of the structures into silicon-based optoelectronics.     

Interdiffusion and relaxation in metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy grown InGaAs/GaAs strained layer quantum wells

Low pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy grown strained InGaAs/GaAs quantum well structures have been characterized by photoluminescence and x-ray diffraction. It is shown that beyond the pseudomorphic limit, these structures show considerable gallium/indium interdiffusion at the interfaces and partial strain relaxation in the quantum well layers.     

High quality GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells grown on (111)A substrates by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy

Growth of GaAs and AlGaAs epitaxial layers on both (111)A and (111)13 faces of GaAs substrates was studied by the atmospheric metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) technique. We show that GaAs and AlGaAs layers with excellent surface quality can be grown at relatively low temperatures and V/III ratios (600°C, 15) on the (111)A face, whereas for layers on the (111)13 face a higher growth temperature (720°C) was required. GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well (QW) structures were successfully grown for the first time on the (111)A GaAs face by the MOVPE technique. The effects of various growth conditions on the surface morphology of the epilayers were studied. For the (111)A surface a wide growth window with temperatures in the range 600°-660°C and V/III ratios varying from 15 to 45 was established for obtaining excellent surface morphology. The properties of the QWs were investigated by high resolution X-ray diffractometry, photoluminenscence and photoreflectance measurements. These measurements indicate that the QWs are of very high structural and optical quality.     

InGaAs quantum dots formed in tetrahedral-shaped recesses on GaAs (111)B grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

Novel semiconductor quantum dots (QDs), grown in tetrahedral-shaped recesses (TSRs) formed on a (111)B GaAs substrate, are described from both material science and device application points of view. After explaining the fabrication procedure for TSRs, growth of InGaAs QDs and their optical properties are explained. It is revealed that an InGaAs QD of indium-rich chemical composition is formed spontaneously at the bottom of each TSR. The mechanism of the QD formation is discussed in detail. It is proved from magneto-photoluminescence that the QDs actually have optical properties peculiar to zero-dimensional confinement. Several experimental results indicating excellent growth controllability of the QDs are presented. Finally, recent challenges to apply the QDs to electronic memory devices are reported. Two kinds of devices, where the position of individual QD is artificially controlled, are proposed for the first time and the preliminary experimental results are explained.     

Strain effects in CdTe (111) epitaxial layers grown on GaAs (100) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy

Spectroscopic ellipsometry and photoreflectance measurements on CdTe/GaAs strained heterostructures grown by moleculclr beam epitaxy were carried out to investigate the effect of the strain and the dependence of the lattice parameter on the CdTe epitaxial layer thicknesses. Compressive strains exist in CdTe layers thinner than 2 μm. As the strain increases, the value of the critical-point energy shift increases linearly. These results indicate that the strains in the CdTe layers grown on GaAs substrates are strongly dependent on the CdTe layer thickness. Author to whom all correspondence should be addressed.     

Ultraviolet luminescence of thin GaN films grown by radical-beam gettering epitaxy on porous GaAs(111) substrates

GaN films with a thickness of 0.1 μm were grown by radical-beam gettering epitaxy on porous GaAs(111) substrates. Excitonic luminescence bands are dominant in the photoluminescence spectra measured at 4.2 K. The energy positions of excitonic-band peaks are analyzed; as a result, it is concluded that there are stresses in the grown GaN films. __________ Translated from Fizika i Tekhnika Poluprovodnikov, Vol. 37, No. 11, 2003, pp. 1303–1304. Original Russian Text Copyright ? 2003 by Kidalov, Sukach, Revenko, Potapenko.