Shallow impurity binding energy in lateral parabolic confinement under an external magnetic field

We have described the calculation of hydrogenic impurity binding energies in cylindrical GaAs–Ga_1−xAl_xAs quantum well wires (QWWs) with lateral parabolic confinement in the presence of an axial magnetic field. The numerical calculations of this system have been performed with the use of a variational procedure in the effective mass approximation. We observed sharp changes in binding energy for critical spatial confinement radius and B$B$ magnetic field values.     

Theoretical research on optical properties and quantum efficiency of Ga1−xAlxN photocathodes

In order to design the optimal component structure of transmission-mode (t-mode) Ga_1−xAl_xN photocathode, the optical properties and quantum efficiency of Ga_1−xAl_xN photocathodes are simulated. Based on thin film principle, optical model of t-mode Ga_1−xAl_xN photocathodes is built. And the quantum efficiency formula is put forward. Results show that Ga_1−xAl_xN photocathodes can satisfy the need of detectors with “solar blind” property when the Al component is bigger than 0.375. There is an optimal thickness of Ga_1−xAl_xN layer to get highest quantum efficiency, and the optimal thickness is 0.3 μm. There is close relation between absorptivity and quantum efficiency, which is in good agreement with the “three-step” model. This work gives a reference for the experimental research on the Ga_1−xAl_xN photocathodes.     

First principles investigation of optical properties of zinc-blende AlxGa1−xAs1−yNy materials

We have performed a first-principle Full Potential Linearized Augmented Plane Waves calculation within the local density approximation (LDA) to the zinc-blende Al_xGa_1−xAs_1−yN_y to predict its optical properties as a function of N and Al mole fractions. The accurate calculations of electronic properties such as band structures and optical properties like refractive index, reflectivity and absorption coefficient of Al_xGa_1−xAs and Al_xGa_1−xAs_1−yN_y with x≤0.375 and y up to 4% are presented. Al_xGa_1−xAs on GaAs have a lattice mismatch less than 0.16% and the lattice constant of Al_xGa_1−xAs has a derivation parameter of 0.0113±0.0024. The band gap energies are calculated by LDA and the band anticrossing model using a matrix element of C_MN=2.32 and a N level of E_N=(1.625+0.069x) eV. The results show that Al_xGa_1−xAs can be very useful as a barrier layer in separate confinement heterostructure lasers and indicate that the best choice of x and y Al_xGa_1−xAs_1−yN_y could be an alternative to Al_xGa_1−xAs when utilized as active layers in quantum well lasers and high-efficiency solar cell structures.     

The effect of nonparabolicity on binding energy of ground and excited states in a corrugated quantum well

The binding energy of a hydrogenic impurity is calculated in a Ga_1−xAl_xAs/Ga_1−yAl_yAs corrugated quantum well within the single band effective mass approximation for different Al concentration. Binding energy of the ground state and the excited state of a donor is calculated, with the inclusion of 2D Hartree dielectric screening function. The effect of nonparabolicity of the conduction band is considered through the energy dependent effective mass. The effect of nonparabolicity on spin–orbit interaction energy is found. The oscillator strength coupling between the ground state and the excited state is calculated. The dependence of the donor binding energy on the well width and the Al-concentration is discussed. These results are discussed with the available data in the literature.     

Exciton in wurtzite GaN/AlxGa1−xN coupled quantum dots

Based on effective-mass approximation, we present a three-dimensional study of the exciton in GaN/Al_xGa_1−xN vertically coupled quantum dots (QDs) by a variational approach. The strong built-in electric field due to the piezoelectricity and spontaneous polarization is considered. The relationship between exciton states and structural parameters of wurtzite GaN/Al_xGa_1−xN coupled QDs is studied in detail. Our numerical results show that the strong built-in electric field in the GaN/Al_xGa_1−xN strained coupled QDs leads to a marked reduction of the effective band gap of GaN QDs. The exciton binding energy, the QD transition energy and the electron-hole recombination rate are reduced if barrier thickness L^AlGaN is increased. The sizes of QDs have a significant influence on the exciton state and interband optical transitions in coupled QDs.     

The effect of hydrostatic pressure on subband structure and optical transitions in modulation-doped quantum well

Within the framework of effective-mass approximation, we have calculated theoretically the effects of hydrostatic pressure and doping concentration on subband structure and optical transitions in modulation-doped GaAs/Al_xGa_1−xAs quantum well for different well widths. The electronic structure of modulation-doped quantum well under the hydrostatic pressure is determined by solving the Schrödinger and Poisson equations self-consistently. The results obtained show that intersubband transitions and the subband energy levels in the modulation-doped quantum well can be significantly modified and controlled by the well width, donor concentration and hydrostatic pressure.     

Effect of Γ-X band crossover and impurity location on the diamagnetic susceptibility of a donor in a quantum well

We present the calculation of diamagnetic susceptibility (χ_dia) of a hydrogenic donor in GaAs/Al_xGa_1−xAs quantum well for various compositions of Al and for different impurity locations within the well. The effect of Γ-X band crossing due to hydrostatic pressure on χ_dia is also investigated taking into account the non-parabolicity of the conduction band.     

Intensity-dependent nonlinear optical properties in a modulation-doped single quantum well

In the present work, the changes in the intersubband optical absorption coefficients and the refractive index in a modulation-doped quantum well have been investigated theoretically. Within the envelope function approach and the effective mass approximation, the electronic structure of the quantum well is calculated from the self-consistent numerical solution of the coupled Schrödinger-Poisson equations. The analytical expressions of optical properties are obtained by using the compact density-matrix approach. The numerical results GaAs/Al_xGa_1−xAs are presented for typical modulation-doped quantum well system. The linear, third-order nonlinear and total absorption and refractive index changes depending on the doping concentration are investigated as a function of the incident optical intensity and structure parameters, such as quantum well width and stoichiometric ratio. The results show that the doping concentration, the structure parameters and the incident optical intensity have a great effect on the optical characteristics of these structures.     

Study on the electronic structure and optical properties of different Al constituent Ga1−xAlxAs

Using quantum mechanics GASTEP software package based on the first principle density function theory, the electronic structure and optical properties of Ga_1−xAl_xAs at different Al constituent are calculated. Result shows that with the increase of Al constituent, the band gap of Ga_1−xAl_xAs increases and varies from direct band gap to indirect band gap; the absorption band edge and the absorption peak move to high-energy side; the static reflectivity decreases. With the increasing of the incident photon energy, Ga_1−xAl_xAs shows metal reflective properties in certain energy range. With the increasing of Al constituent, static dielectric constant decreases and the intersection of dielectric function and the x-axis move towards high-energy side; the peak of energy loss function move to low-energy side and the peak value reduces.     

Electronic parameters and electronic structures in modulation-doped highly strained InxGa1−xAs/InyAl1−yAs coupled double quantum wells

Electronic parameters of a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in modulation-doped highly strained In_xGa_1−xAs/In_yAl_1−yAs coupled double quantum wells were investigated by performing Shubnikov-de Haas (S-dH), Van der Pauw Hall-effect, and cyclotron resonance measurements. The S-dH measurements and the fast Fourier transformation results for the S-dH at 1.5 K indicated the electron occupation of two subbands in the quantum well. The electron effective masses of the 2DEG were determined from the cyclotron resonance measurements, and satisfied qualitatively the nonparabolicity effects in the quantum wells. The electronic subband structures were calculated by using a self-consistent method.     

Diamagnetic susceptibility of hydrogenic donor impurity in low-dimensional semiconducting systems

The binding energies of a hydrogenic donor both in the parabolic and non-parabolic conduction band model within the effective mass approximation have been computed for the low-dimensional semiconducting systems (LDSS) like quantum well, quantum well wire and quantum dot taking GaAs/Al_xGa_1−xAs systems as an example. It is observed that the effect of non-parabolicity is not effective when the system goes to lower dimensionality. The diamagnetic susceptibility of a hydrogenic donor impurity has also been computed in these LDSS in the infinite barrier model. Since no theoretical or experimental works on the diamagnetic susceptibility of LDSS are available in the literature, as a realistic case the diamagnetic susceptibility has been computed in the finite barrier model (x=0.3) for a quantum well and the results are discussed in the light of semiconductor-metal transition.     

Effect of hydrogen on modulation-doped AlGaAs/InGaAs/GaAs heterostructures: a photoluminescence study

The effect of hydrogen on donors and interface defects in silicon modulation doped Al_xGa_1−xAs/In_yGa_1−yAs/GaAs heterostructures has been investigated by photoluminescence (PL). Hydrogenation was carried out on two sets of samples, one set consists of high quality pseudomorphic heterostructures and another set having partially lattice relaxed structures prone to the defects. On exposure of high quality pseudomorphic structures to hydrogen plasma above 150 °C, a significant blue shift in the PL peak positions as well as bandwidth narrowing is observed. This indicates, the reduction in two-dimensional electron gas in the In_yGa_1−yAs quantum well due to hydrogen passivation of silicon donors in the Al_xGa_1−xAs supply layer. The reactivation of the donors is observed upon annealing the hydrogenated sample for 1 h at 250 °C under hydrogen ambient. Another interesting feature is a significant improvement in the PL of lattice-relaxed structures upon hydrogenation of the samples above 250 °C, which is attributed to the hydrogen passivation of interface defects due to the misfit dislocations.     

Application of coordinate transformation and finite differences method for electron and hole states calculations

In this work we are particularly interested for GaAs/Ga_1−xAl_xAs V-groove quantum wires. The paper presents an efficient and simple method for energy spectra and wave function calculations of electrons and holes in V-groove quantum wires. The method is based on the coordinate transformation of the V-groove quantum wire structure and the computational domain using a function proposed by Inoshita. Then, the Hamiltonian followed by implementation of the FDM (Finite Difference Method) in the new computational space leads to an eigenvalues problem resolved using specialized LAPACK’s routines. The influence of the parameters introduced in the mathematical function, is studied on the energy levels of electrons and holes as well as the oscillator strengths.     

Binding energies of excitons in symmetric and asymmetric quantum wells in a magnetic field

The binding energy of the exciton in the symmetric and asymmetric GaAs/Ga_1 − xAl_xAs quantum wells is calculated with the use of a variational approach. Results have been obtained as a function of the potential symmetry, and the size of the quantum well in the presence of an arbitrary magnetic field. The applied magnetic field is taken to be parallel to the axis of growth of the quantum well structure. The role of the asymmetric barriers, magnetic field, and well width in the excitonic binding is discussed as the tunability parameters of the GaAs/Ga_1 − xAl_xAs system.     

Interface phonons in cylindrical quantum dot heterostructure

The top interface optical (TIO) and side interface optical (SIO) phonon modes of a cylindrical GaAs/ Al_xGa_1−xAs quantum dot are derived within the framework of dielectric continuum approximation. Results reveal that, in the case of taking the “two-mode” behavior of the Al_xGa_1−xAs material into account, there exist eight branches of TIO phonon modes and four branches of SIO phonon modes. The dispersion frequencies of TIO or SIO phonon modes sensitively depend on the Al mole fraction x$x$ in the Al_xGa_1−xAs material. With increasing wavevector q$q$ (κ$\kappa$), the frequency of each TIO (SIO) mode approaches one of the two frequency values of the single Al_xGa_1−xAs heterostructure.     

Hydrogenic impurity states in zinc-blende InxGa1−xN/GaN in cylindrical quantum well wires

Within the framework of effective-mass approximation, the binding energy of a hydrogenic donor impurity in zinc-blende (ZB) In_xGa_1−x  N/GaN cylindrical quantum well wires (CQWWs) is investigated using variational procedures. Numerical results show that the ground-state donor binding energy _Eb$E_b$ is highly dependent on the impurity position and the CQWWs structure parameters. The donor binding energy for a shallow donor impurity located at the center of the CQWWs is the largest. As the impurity position changes from the center of the wire to its edge, the donor binding energy gets smaller. Also, we have found that In concentration is a very important value to tailor the system, since the binding energies close to binding energy maxima are strongly dependent on In content.     

Simultaneous effects of temperature and pressure on the donor binding energy in a V-groove quantum wire

The influence of temperature and pressure, simultaneously, on the binding energy of a hydrogenic donor impurity in a ridge GaAs/Ga_1−xAl_xAs quantum wire is studied using a variational procedure within the effective mass approximation. The subband energy and the binding energy of the donor impurity in its ground state as a function of the wire bend width and impurity location at different temperatures and pressures are calculated. The results show that, when the temperature increases, the donor binding energy decreases for a constant applied pressure for all wire bend widths. Also, the binding energy increases by increasing the pressure for a constant temperature for all wire bend widths. In addition, when the temperature and pressure are applied simultaneously the binding energy decreases as the quantum wire bend width increases. On the whole, it is deduced that the temperature and pressure have important effects on the donor binding energy in a V-groove quantum wire.     

The influence of chemical treatment and thermal annealing on AlxGa1−xN surfaces: An XPS study

The influences of chemical treatment and thermal annealing of Al_xGa_1−xN (x = 0.20) have been investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). XPS analysis showed that successive chemical treatments and annealing produced changes in the stoichiometry of the Al_xGa_1−xN surface, with the surface concentration of N increasing and Al and Ga decreasing with increasing temperature. Band bending occurred at the Al_xGa_1−xN surface, in parallel with the observed changes in stoichiometry. These results are discussed in the context of the creation of surface states via the activation of vacancies and induced by defects. These findings point towards the possibility of selecting and/or engineering the band structure at Al_xGa_1−xN surfaces through a combination of surface preparation and annealing.     

Shallow impurity centers in semiconductor quantum well structures

Interest in the study of the behavior of shallow impurity centers in superlattices and quantum well structures is fairly recent. This paper reviews briefly both the theoretical and experimental work done in this field in the last few years. Several recent calculations of the energy levels of hydrogenic impurity states in quantum well structures, such as Ga_1?xAl_xAsGaAsGa_1?xAl_xAs, are reviewed. The behavior of these levels as a function of the quantum well size is discussed. Recent experimental data concerning the variations of the binding energies of shallow donors and acceptors as a function of the GaAs quantum well size are reviewed. A comparison between these experimental measurements and the results of recent calculations is presented.     

Subband transitions in AlxGa1−xN /GaN/ AlxGa1−xN and AlxGa1−xN /InN/ AlxGa1−xN single quantum wells

We have calculated the spectral regime of subband transitions in Al_xGa_1−xN/GaN and Al_xGa_1−xN/InN single quantum wells. We used a simplified model to account for the internal electric fields, which modify the shape of the quantum well. Some of the parameters for these materials have not yet been firmly established. Therefore, we carried out the analysis for the extremes of the reported values of conduction band discontinuities and band gaps (in the case of InN). This analysis shows that the spectral regime of interband transitions for 1–4 nm thick wells has wavelengths above 0.5 μm for AlGaN/InN and above 0.8 μm for AlGaN/GaN and both heterostructures cover several μm wavelengths. The spectral variation with alloy composition is less pronounced in the Al_xGa_1−xN/InN single quantum wells due to the higher electric field present across the InN quantum well as compared to GaN. The results of these calculations are in good agreement with more rigorous theoretical approaches and available experimental values for Al_xGa_1−xN/GaN.