Transport and optics in quantum wires fabricated by MBE overgrowth on the (110) cleaved edge

The MBE double-growth technique that we call cleaved-edge overgrowth has, over the past several years, proved itself to be especially suitable for making quantum wires of the very highest quality. We will review our recent progress in measuring the transport and quantum optics characteristics of these wires, and the MBE growth issues that arise with cleaved-edge overgrowth fabrication. Our transport experiments have resulted in 250 Å wide quantum wires with ballistic mean free paths exceeding 10 μm. We verify the prediction that in the ballistic regime the electron conductivity in a quantum wire is independent of the wire length and shows quantized steps proportional to e²/h. The deviation of our observed step heights from exactly e²/h is taken as evidence for correlated electron behaviour. The electrons are tightly confined on three sides by atomically smooth GaAs/AlGaAs heterojunctions and in the fourth direction by an electric field. This results in a quantum wire of nominal square cross-section 250 × 250 Å. Magneto-transport measurements reveal quantum wire sub-band separations in excess of 20 meV as well as the symmetries of the wave functions of the one-dimensional modes. For optics studies our quantum wires are made using cleaved-edge overgrowth to form a line junction as two quantum wells are made to intersect with the cross-section forming a letter ‘T’. This line intersection separately forms a quantum wire bound-state for holes, for electrons, and even for excitons. We have characterized our optical wires by PL, by PLE, and by scanning near-field optics. An important application of this work is our demonstration of the first quantum laser using this T-geometry.     

Photo- and cathodoluminescence of AlGaAs single quantum wires on vicinal GaAs (110) surfaces

AlGaAs quantum wires are naturally formed by the compositional modulation in an AlGaAs layer on vicinal GaAs (110) surfaces with quasi-periodic giant growth steps by molecular beam epitaxy. We put an Al mask with a 0.3 μm wide slit on the sample surface to get the single quantum wire's photoluminescence (PL). Two sharp PL bands are observed through this slit and are concluded to come from the two single quantum wires. Cathodoluminescence (CL) spot spectra with a small excitation area show the fine structures with several sharp lines which originate from different quantum wires. The monochromatic CL images clearly show the individual single quantum wires.     

Inelastic light scattering from electronic excitations in deep-etched quantum dots and wires

Resonant Raman spectroscopy of modulation-doped GaAs/AlGaAs multiple quantum well dots and wires is reported. Deep etching with a SiCl₄ reactive ion etching process achieved an excellent aspect ratio (>10:1) and low surface damage for dots and wires of sizes in the range 60–250 nm. A rich spectrum of single particle excitations was observed at Raman shifts in the range 1–35 meV for both dots and wires. Sharp resonances were found for the Raman intensities. The electronic scattering in wires exhibits distinct polarization properties in agreement with theoretical predictions and the spin density excitation energies are in reasonable agreement with Hartree approximation calculations. The dispersion of the intrasubband plasmon collective mode in 60 nm wires has been determined. The excitations in dots show a systematic shift to higher energy with decreasing dot diameter consistent with increased confinement. Magneto-Raman scattering from dot samples was also investigated at magnetic fields up to 12 T and the excitation spectra show level splitting, level crossing and mode softening with increasing magnetic field.     

Seeded self-ordering of GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wires on non-planar substrates

Self-ordering of GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wires grown by organometallic chemical vapor deposition on grooved substrates was studied. The evolution of the surface profile at the corner between two quasi-{111}A planes was evaluated using cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy. The radius of curvature at the corner exhibits a reproducible, self-limiting value of 7.7 ± 0.7 nm, which increases linearly during subsequent growth of GaAs layers and decreases exponentially to its self-limiting value during further growth of AlGaAs layers. This provides the basis for the self-ordering of periodic, vertically stacked arrays of quantum wires with virtually identical shape, size and composition.     

AlGaAs/GaAs quantum wire lasers fabricated by flow rate modulationepitaxy

AlGaAs/GaAs quantum wire lasers, with three quantum wires (QWRs) of almost identical physical size, have been fabricated by flow rate modulation epitaxy. Room temperature lasing from the ground state electron and heavy-hole (le-lhh) transition of the QWRs has been observed for the first time. Typical threshold currents of 6 mA and extremely minor wavelength shifts in emission spectra have been obtained     

MBE自组织方法生长InGaAs/AlGaAs量子线FET材料

利用分子束外延 (MBE)技术在高指数面 Ga As衬底上自组织生长了应变 In Ga As/Ga As量子线材料。原子力显微镜 (AFM)观测结果表明量子线的密度高达 4× 1 0 5/cm。低温偏振光致发光谱 (PPL)研究发现其发光峰半高宽 (FWHM)最小为 9.2 me V,最大偏振度可达 0 .2 2。以 Al Ga As为垫垒 ,In Ga As/Ga As量子线为沟道 ,成功制备了量子线场效应管 (QWR-FET)结构材料 ,并试制了器件 ,获得了较好的器件结果     

Super-flat (411)A interfaces and uniformly corrugated (775)B interfaces in GaAs/AlGaAs and InGaAs/InAlAs heterostructures grown by molecular beam epitaxy

Extremely flat interfaces, i.e. effectively atomically flat interfaces over a wafer-size area were realized in GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells (QWs) grown on (411)A GaAs substrates by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). These flat interfaces are called as “(411)A super-flat interfaces”. Besides in GaAs/AlGaAs QWs, the (411)A super-flat interfaces were formed in pseudomorphic InGaAs/AlGaAs QWs on GaAs substrates and in pseudomorphic and lattice-matched InGaAs/InAlAs QWs on InP substrates. GaAs/AlGaAs resonant tunneling diodes and InGaAs/InAlAs HEMT structures with the (411)A super-flat interfaces were confirmed to exhibit improved characteristics, indicating high potential of applications of the (411)A super-flat interfaces. High density, high uniformity and good optical quality were achieved in (775)B GaAs/(GaAs)_m(AlAs)_n quantum wires (QWRs) self-organized in a GaAs/(GaAs)_m(AlAs)_n QW grown on (775)B GaAs substrates by MBE. The QWRs were successfully applied to QWR lasers, which oscillated at room temperature for the first time as QWR lasers with a self-organized QWR structure in its active region. These results suggest that MBE growth on high index crystal plane such as (411)A or (775)B is very promising for developing novel semiconductor materials for future electron devices.     

Self-organization of nanostructures on planar and patterned high-index semiconductor surfaces

In order to directly control the size and in particular the position of nanostructures naturally formed on high-index semiconductor surfaces during molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE), the growth on patterned high-index GaAs substrates is investigated. During MBE of (AlGa)As on patterned GaAs (311)A substrates, a new phenomenon in the selectivity of growth has been found to form a fast growing sidewall on one side of mesa stripes oriented along the [01-1] direction. Preferential migration of Ga adatoms from the mesa top as well as the mesa bottom toward the sidewall develops a smooth convex curved surface profile without facets. This unique growth mode that does not occur for the perpendicular stripe orientation nor on other patterned GaAs (n11)A and B substrates is stable for step heights down to the quantum size regime to produce lateral quantum wires on patterned GaAs (311)A substrates. Quantum confinement of excitons in the wires has been demonstrated by the transition from two-dimensional to magnetic confinement with increasing magnetic field. For device applications it is important that the wires can be stacked in the growth direction without any increase in interface roughness or wire size fluctuations, indicating a self-limiting lateral growth mechanism. Finally, in strained layer epitaxy, (InGa)As islands can be selectively placed on the mesa top and bottom leaving entirely free the curved part along the fast growing side-wall.     

Pseudo two-dimensional simulation of a three heterojunction GaAs/AlGaAs MODFET

A new model is presented for the simulation of the d.c. characteristics of three heterojunctions AlGaAs/GaAs Field Effect Transistors. The dependence of the carrier densities in the GaAs wells and in the doped AlGaAs layers is derived as a function of gate voltage by analytical resolution of Schrödinger equation and numerical resolution of Poisson's equation using Fermi-Dirac statistics. The simulated d.c. characteristics are obtained by numerical integration of the current density from source to drain and include the source and drain access resistances. The comparison between experimental measurements and calculated results for both long (L_g = 20 μm) and short (L_g = 2 μm) gate lengths MODFETs is excellent and demonstrates the validity of the model to optimize the device parameters. The influence of various parameters such as the AlGaAs layer thickness and electron velocity in the inverted well on the device performance is numerically simulated for a 1 μm gate length device. Their effect on the transistor characteristics such as transconductance and maximum drain current is discussed.     

GaAs/Ga1-xAlxAs量子阱线中类氢杂质的束缚能和光致电离截面

通过在波函数中考虑量子线的限制方向和非限制方向的相关性,计算了GaAs/Ga1-xAlxAs量子阱线中类氢杂质的束缚能和光致电离截面.结果表明光致电离截面的大小受量子线尺寸的影响,并且对于相同尺寸的量子线,有限深势阱中杂质态的光致电离截面要比无限深势阱中的大.与他人的结果比较发现,所选波函数改进了体系的束缚能,并使光致电离截面减小,这使得结果更为合理.     

GaAs/Ga_(1-x)Al_xAs量子阱线中类氢杂质的束缚能和光致电离截面

通过在波函数中考虑量子线的限制方向和非限制方向的相关性,计算了Ga As/ Ga1 - x Alx As量子阱线中类氢杂质的束缚能和光致电离截面.结果表明光致电离截面的大小受量子线尺寸的影响,并且对于相同尺寸的量子线,有限深势阱中杂质态的光致电离截面要比无限深势阱中的大.与他人的结果比较发现,所选波函数改进了体系的束缚能,并使光致电离截面减小,这使得结果更为合理     

Self-ordered nanostructures grown by organometallic chemical vapor deposition on V-grooved substrates: experiments and Monte-Carlo simulations

The growth the GaAs/GaAlAs quantum wires by organometallic chemical vapor deposition on V-grooved substrates relies on the formation of a self-limiting AlGaAs surface profile and the thickness modulation in the form of a crescent of the GaAs layer. In order to gain understanding on the growth process at the atomic level, we developed a two-dimensional Monte-Carlo simulation based on the solid-on-solid model. In good agreement with experimental results, our kinetic model shows that the self-limited profile results from the competition between the growth rate anisotropy on the different facets of the groove and the surface diffusion of adatoms. The predictions of the growth modeling are experimentally employed to control at the nanometer scale the shape of quantum wires using successive changes in the growth conditions. This understanding of the growth mechanisms opens the way to an accurate control of the quantum confinement in quantum wires.     

Studies on the structure of crescent-shaped GaAs quantum wires by combination of electron microscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy

Crescent-shaped GaAs quantum wires were fabricated on a V-grooved GaAs(001) substrate using a flow rate modulation epitaxy technique in metalorganic chemical vapor phase deposition method. The microstructures of the quantum wires were investigated using electron microscopy. The optimum growth conditions for the quantum wire superlattice structures were discussed from the observed microstructures. The optical properties of the fabricated single quantum wires were also investigated using photoluminescence spectroscopy. The relationship between the microstructures of the quantum wires and the observed optical properties is discussed on the basis of computer simulations of the electronics structure.     

Tunable cyclotron resonance laser based on hot holes in germanium applied to FIR spectroscopy of GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures

We have studied the stimulated far infrared (FIR) cyclotron resonance emission from the heavy holes in germanium. The emission spectrum consists of a single line which is linearly tunable by the magnetic field. We have measured the cyclotron resonance absorption of a GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructure using the stimulated cyclotron resonance emission as a light source for the first time. The photoconductive response of the GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructure is studied as a function of the magnetic field. We found that the photoconductive signal depends strongly on the filling factor.     

GaN based transistors for high power applications

Unique properties of GaN and related semiconductors make them superior for high-power applications. The maximum density of the two-dimensional electron gas at the GaN/AlGaN heterointerface or in GaN/AlGaN quantum well structures can exceed 2×10¹³ cm⁻², which is more than an order of magnitude higher than for traditional GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures. The mobility-sheet carrier concentration product for these two dimensional systems might also exceed that for GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures and can be further enhanced by doping the conducting channels and by using “piezoelectric” doping. Current densities over 20 A mm⁻¹ can be reached in GaN-based high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs). These high current values can be combined with very high breakdown voltages in high-power HEMTs, which are expected to reach several thousand volts. Recent Monte Carlo simulations point to strong ballistic and overshoot effects in GaN and related materials, which should be even more pronounced than in GaAs-based compounds but at much higher electric fields. This should allow us to achieve faster switching, minimizing the power dissipation during switching events. Self-heating, which is unavoidable in power devices, raises operating temperatures of power devices well above the ambient temperature. For GaN-based devices, the use of SiC substrates allows to combine the best features of both GaN and SiC technologies; and GaN/SiC-based semiconductors and heterostructures should find numerous applications in power electronics.     

InP/InAlAs/InGaAs quantum wires

Single InGaAs quantum wires and stacked InGaAs quantum wires with InAIAs barriers have been fabricated on V-grooved InP substrates by low pressure metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD). We have found growth conditions where the InAIAs barrier exhibits a resharpening effect, similar to that of AlGaAs utilized for growth on GaAs substrates. The existence of structural and electronic quantum wires in the bottom of the grooves is proven.     

InGaAs/GaAs/AlGaAs应变量子阱激光器

优化设计了既能实现较小垂直方向远场发散角,又能降低腔面光功率密度的ＩｎＧａＡｓ／ＧａＡｓ／ＡｌＧａＡｓ应变层量子阱激光器,并计算了该结构激光器实现基横模工作的脊形波导结构参数。利用分子束外延生长了ＩｎＧａＡｓ／ＧａＡｓ／ＡｌＧａＡｓ应变量子阱激光器材料并研制出基横模输出功率大于１４０ｍＷ,激射波长为９８０ｎｍ的脊形波导应变量子阱激光器,其微分量子效率为０．８Ｗ／Ａ,垂直和平行结平面方向远场发散角分别为２８°和６．８°     

Quantized conductance in a Si/Si0.7Ge0.3 split-gate device and impurity-related magnetotransport phenomena

We have defined a quantum point-contact by the split-gate technique in a Si/SiGe heterostructure containing a two-dimensional electron gas with an elastic mean free path of about 1.3 μm. The conductance of this device shows typical steps very close to multiples of 4e² h⁻¹. Upon application of a perpendicular magnetic field the spin and valley degeneracies are lifted and magnetic depopulation of the one-dimensional subbands can be observed. The appearance of Aharonov-Bohm oscillations for B ≥ 2T and of resonant tunneling peaks close to “pinch-off” indicates the presence of impurities close to the constriction.     

Self-limiting OMCVD growth of GaAs on V-grooved substrates with application to InGaAs/GaAs quantum wires

We demonstrate that the formation of GaAs quantum wires on self-limiting AlGaAs grown on V grooves occurs via a transient increase of the growth rates in a set of different nanofacets. Upon growth of sufficiently thick layers on AlGaAs, the GaAs surface reaches a self-limiting profile as well, through an equalization of the relative growth rates on these facets. Atomic force microscopy studies show that the step density in the facets along the groove evolves with GaAs thickness in the same way as the facets extension, thus suggesting a role of the step distribution in the establishment of the self-limiting profiles. The self-limiting GaAs groove profile is much broader than the AlGaAs one at corresponding growth temperatures; however, it can be sharpened down to a radius of curvature of 5 nm for T = 550°C. Under these conditions, GaAs was successfully used as a barrier material for growing vertical arrays of self-ordered InGaAs wires.