L. Carraresi

Thermally activated carrier transfer and luminescence line shape in self-organized InAs quantum dots

We investigated the temperature dependence (10–180 K) of the photoluminescence (PL) emission spectrum of self‐organized InAs/GaAs quantum dots grown under different conditions. The temperature dependence of the PL intensity is determined by two thermally activated processes: (i) quenching due to the escape of carriers from the quantum dots and (ii) carrier transfer between dots via wetting layer states. The existence of different dot families is confirmed by the deconvolution of the spectra in gaussian components with full width half maxima of 20–30 meV. The transfer of excitation is responsible for the sigmoidal temperature dependence of the peak energies of undeconvoluted PL bands.

Time-resolved spectroscopy of the human forearm

For spectroscopic purposes, the forearm is a conveniently large object to be investigated because consistent oxygenation and blood volume changes can be obtained. Human forearm spectral properties were investigated using picosecond near-IR laser spectroscopy. The behaviour of the temporal point spread function in resting conditions and during ischaemia, venous occlusion and exercise is reported. The effect of path length inaccuracy on muscle oxygen consumption, obtained by combining spectral data with the path length, is discussed.

Growth patterns of self-assembled InAs quantum dots near the two-dimensional to three-dimensional transition

Self-assembled InAs quantum dots have been grown by molecular beam epitaxy in such a way as to obtain a continuous variation of InAs coverages across the wafer. Structured photoluminescence spectra are observed after excitation of a large number of dots; deconvolution into Gaussian components yields narrow emission bands (full width at half-maximum 20–30 meV) separated in energy by an average spacing of 30–40 meV. We ascribe the individual bands of the photoluminescence spectra after low excitation to families of dots with similar shapes and with heights differing by one monolayer, as strongly supported by numerical calculations of the fundamental electronic transitions in quantum dot structures.

GaAs solid state detectors for particle physics

Abstract We report on progress with Schottky diode and p-i-n diode GaAs detectors for minimum ionising particles. The radiation hardness and potential speed of simple diodes is shown to be more than competitive with silicon detector. A discussion is given of the present understanding of the charge transport mechanism in the detectors since it influences their charge collection efficiency. Early results from microstrip detectors are also described.

Transmission of a pulsed thin light beam through thick turbid media: experimental results

Experimental results of light pulse transmission through thick turbid media are presented. Measurements have been carried out on polystyrene latex spheres by using a picosecond thin laser beam and a streak camera system. The results show that the shape of the received pulse depends mostly on the transport mean free path and on the absorption coefficient of the medium, indicating that both the absorption coefficient and the asymmetry factor of the scattering function can be obtained from the pulse shape. The results also show that a detectable amount of received photons follows trajectories near the source receiver line even for large values of optical depth, indicating the potential of a time-gated scanning imaging system to detect absorbing structures inside thick turbid media.

Charge transport properties of undoped SI LEC GaAs solid-state detectors

Abstract The GaAs detectors for minimum ionizing particles fabricated with commercial undoped SI GaAs show good quality as minimum ionizing particle detectors. A discussion is given of the present understanding of the charge transport mechanism in the detectors since it influences their charge collection efficiency.

Time-resolved spin-polarization spectroscopy in GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells

Abstract We present a study of spin relaxation of excitons in a set of nominally undoped GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well (QW) structures by using time-resolved photoluminescence techniques. The initial polarization and the spin relaxation time have been measured varying the excitation energy between the heavy- and light-hole exciton of each well, at a temperature of 4 K. Typical spin relaxation times in the 50–120 ps range are found when increasing the well width from 25 to 90 A; however no dependence of the spin relaxation time on the excitation wavelength has been observed.

Gallium arsenide microstrip detectors for charged particles

Microstrip detectors have been constructed from gallium arsenide (GaAs) wafers made from undoped LEC (liquid-encapsulated Czochralski) semi-insulating substrate material. Tests were performed using minimum ionising particles to ascertain their properties as charged particle detectors. The results show that the devices work wellm, with good signal-to-noise ratio (typically 7). The effects of gamma ray and neutron irradiation have been studied and shown to be small up to levels exceeding 20 Mrad and 1014 n/cm2, respectively.

Gallium arsenide charged particle detectors; trapping effects

The progress on the development of gallium arsenide particle detectors is reviewed. The limitation to the performance is the presence of traps. Studies of the trap properties using α particle DLTS measurements and C-V measurements are described.

Relaxation and recombination in ultrasmall InAs quantum dots

Abstract We report a photoluminescence study of self-organized nanometer-size InAs quantum dots grown by molecular beam epitaxy on a GaAs substrate. High optical excitation has been used in order to observe emission from higher states of the quantum dots. The energy difference between adjacent states turns out to be of the order of 40–50 meV for dot diameters around 20 nm. The photoluminescence decay time at the fundamental transition is found to be of the order of 700 ps, decreasing down to 100 ps for the highest confined states. Finally, a cascade-like mechanism for the carrier relaxation in these structures is strongly suggested by the time resolved data.