Ryan B. Lewis

Composition dependence of photoluminescence of GaAs1-xBix alloys

Room temperature photoluminescence (PL) spectra have been measured for GaAs1−xBix alloys with Bi concentrations in the 0.2%–10.6% range. The decrease in the PL peak energy with increasing Bi concentration follows the reduction in bandgap computed from density functional theory. The PL peak energy is found to increase with PL pump intensity, which we attribute to the presence of shallow localized states associated with Bi clusters near the top of the valence band. The PL intensity is found to increase with Bi concentration at low Bi concentrations, peaking at 4.5% Bi.

Effect of molecular beam epitaxy growth conditions on the Bi content of GaAs1−xBix

We describe how the Bi content of GaAs1−xBix epilayers grown on GaAs can be controlled by the growth conditions in molecular beam epitaxy. Nonstandard growth conditions are required because of the strong tendency for Bi to surface segregate under usual growth conditions for GaAs. A maximum Bi content of 10% is achieved at low substrate temperature and low arsenic pressure, as inferred from x-ray diffraction measurements. A model for bismuth incorporation is proposed that fits a large body of experimental data on Bi content for a wide range of growth conditions. Low growth rates are found to facilitate the growth of bismide alloys with a low density of Bi droplets.

Growth of high Bi concentration GaAs1−xBix by molecular beam epitaxy

The incorporation of Bi is investigated in the molecular beam epitaxy growth of GaAs1−xBix. Bi content increases rapidly as the As2:Ga flux ratio is lowered to 0.5 and then saturates for lower flux ratios. Growth under Ga and Bi rich conditions shows that Bi content increases strongly with decreasing temperature. A model is proposed where Bi from a wetting layer incorporates through attachment to Ga-terminated surface sites. The weak Ga-Bi bond can be broken thermally, ejecting Bi back into the wetting layer. Highly crystalline films with up to 22% Bi were grown at temperatures as low as 200 °C.

Nanoplasmonic Terahertz Photoconductive Switch on GaAs

Low-temperature (LT) grown GaAs has a subpicosecond carrier response time that makes it favorable for terahertz photoconductive (PC) switching. However, this is obtained at the price of lower mobility and lower thermal conductivity than GaAs. Here we demonstrate subpicosecond carrier sweep-out and over an order of magnitude higher sensitivity in detection from a GaAs-based PC switch by using a nanoplasmonic structure. As compared to a conventional GaAs PC switch, we observe 40 times the peak-to-peak response from the nanoplasmonic structure on GaAs. The response is double that of a commercial, antireflection coated LT-GaAs PC switch.

Recombination mechanisms and band alignment of GaAs1-xBix/GaAs light emitting diodes

We investigate the temperature and pressure dependence of the light-current characteristics and electroluminescence spectra of GaAs1−xBix/GaAs light emitting diodes. The temperature dependence of the emission wavelength shows a relatively low temperature coefficient of emission peak shift of 0.19 ± 0.01 nm/K. A strong decrease in emission efficiency with increasing temperature implies that non-radiative recombination plays an important role on the performance of these devices. The pressure coefficient of the GaAs0.986Bi0.014 bandgap is measured to be 11.8 ± 0.3 meV/kbar. The electroluminescence intensity from GaAsBi is found to decrease with increasing pressure accompanied by an increase in luminescence from the GaAs cladding layers suggesting the presence of carrier leakage in the devices.

Temperature dependence of hole mobility in GaAs1−xBix alloys

The Hall mobility of holes has been measured in GaAs grown at low temperatures and in GaAs1−xBix alloys for Bi concentrations x ranging from 0.94% to 5.5%. The hole mobility is found to decrease with increasing Bi content. The temperature dependence of the mobility in the 25 to 300 K range is fit with a combination of phonon scattering, ionized impurity scattering, and Bi related scattering. The hole scattering cross-section for an isolated Bi impurity is estimated to be 0.2 nm2. The temperature independent mobility at the highest Bi concentration (x=5.5%), is interpreted as being limited by scattering from Bi clusters.

Deep level defects in n-type GaAsBi and GaAs grown at low temperatures

Deep level defects in n-type GaAs1−xBix having 0 < x < 0.012 and GaAs grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) at substrate temperatures between 300 and 400 °C have been investigated by Deep Level Capacitance Spectroscopy. Incorporating Bi suppresses the formation of an electron trap with activation energy 0.40 eV, thus reducing the total trap concentration in dilute GaAsBi layers by more than a factor of 20 compared to GaAs grown under the same conditions. We find that the dominant traps in dilute GaAsBi layers are defect complexes involving AsGa, as expected for MBE growth at these temperatures.

Bandgap and optical absorption edge of GaAs1−xBix alloys with 0 < x < 17.8%

The compositional dependence of the fundamental bandgap of pseudomorphic GaAs1−xBix layers on GaAs substrates is studied at room temperature by optical transmission and photoluminescence spectroscopies. All GaAs1−xBix films (0 ≤ x ≤ 17.8%) show direct optical bandgaps, which decrease with increasing Bi content, closely following density functional theory predictions. The smallest measured bandgap is 0.52 eV (∼2.4 μm) at 17.8% Bi. Extrapolating a fit to the data, the GaAs1−xBix bandgap is predicted to reach 0 eV at 35% Bi. Below the GaAs1−xBix bandgap, exponential absorption band tails are observed with Urbach energies 3–6 times larger than that of bulk GaAs. The Urbach parameter increases with Bi content up to 5.5% Bi, and remains constant at higher concentrations. The lattice constant and Bi content of GaAs1−xBix layers (0 < x ≤ 19.4%) are studied using high resolution x-ray diffraction and Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy. The relaxed lattice constant of hypothetical zincblende GaBi is estimated t...

Deep level defects in GaAs1―xBix/GaAs heterostructures

Deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) measurements were performed on p–i–n diodes having i-regions that include a GaAs1−xBix layer sandwiched between two GaAs layers, all grown at T < 400 °C. A GaAs1−xBix/GaAs heterostructure with Bi fraction x = 4.7% grown at 285 °C was found to have several traps in concentrations of ~5 × 1015 cm−3. The location of the observed traps in the i-region is determined from simulations of the band diagrams of these devices at the bias conditions used for the DLTS measurements and confirmed by DLTS spectra taken at various filling voltages.

Anomalous Strain Relaxation in Core–Shell Nanowire Heterostructures via Simultaneous Coherent and Incoherent Growth

Nanoscale substrates such as nanowires allow heterostructure design to venture well beyond the narrow lattice mismatch range restricting planar heterostructures, owing to misfit strain relaxing at the free surfaces and partitioning throughout the entire nanostructure. In this work, we uncover a novel strain relaxation process in GaAs/InxGa1-xAs core-shell nanowires that is a direct result of the nanofaceted nature of these nanostructures. Above a critical lattice mismatch, plastically relaxed mounds form at the edges of the nanowire sidewall facets. The relaxed mounds and a coherent shell grow simultaneously from the beginning of the deposition with higher lattice mismatches increasingly favoring incoherent mound growth. This is in stark contrast to Stranski-Krastanov growth, where above a critical thickness coherent layer growth no longer occurs. This study highlights how understanding strain relaxation in lattice mismatched nanofaceted heterostructures is essential for designing devices based on these nanostructures.