The set of material parameters for quantum well structures is of immense importance because of its usage in the development of theories, extraction of experimental data, and the proper design of devices. In particular, the (Al,In)GaAs/GaAs, InGaAs/InP and (In,Ga)AlAs/InGaAs quantum well systems have drawn a lot of attention. They form the center core of materials used for fundamental basic research and device applications. Despite the presence of some review articles and reference books, there is a lack of clear reference on the accurate determination of the material parameters for quantum wells. This review aims to provide a comprehensive and systematic set of material parameters for the above quantum well systems grown on (1 0 0) substrates at two different temperatures, below 10 K and at around 300 K. The parameters are compared against experimental data from various fabrication sources, measurement techniques, and quantum well structures. The values presented here serve as an accurate and up to date source of reference.

Material parameters of InGaAsP and InAlGaAs systems for use in quantum well structures at low and room temperatures

Stresses and strains in heterostructures have dominated semiconductor research during the last ten years. We review the theory and experimental work on stresses in III - V semiconductor heterostructures in this paper. First large-area lattice mismatched layers (InGaAs and InGaP layers grown on GaAs or InP substrates) and thermally strained layers (GaAs, GaP and InP layers grown directly on Si) are considered. The stresses in large-area epilayer - substrate structures are easy to model because substrate distortion can be neglected and strain in the epilayer is a simple biaxial tetragonal distortion. Calculated splitting of band edges, modification of bandgaps and shifts of Raman modes show good agreement with experiments. Edges of a stripe relax stress in the stripes and induce stress in the substrate. Since stresses in the stripe and the substrate are coupled, calculation of stresses in stripes and substrates is more involved. Recent finite element (FE) calculations of these stresses are discussed in detail and compared with the approximate analytical models and with luminescence and Raman measurements. FE calculations of stresses in buried quantum wires, stressor-induced quantum wires and quantum dots are also discussed. The results of these calculations are used to determine stability and luminescence of the quantum wires and dots and compared with the experimental results. Finally self-organized quantum dots consisting of islands formed during the 3D growth of InAs layers on GaAs are discussed. A possible explanation of the recent observation that they are formed in vertical columns embedded in GaAs is suggested. .

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/0268-1242/11/5/004/pdf

Stresses and strains in epilayers, stripes and quantum structures of III - V compound semiconductors

We discuss recent advances made in the theory and measurements of stresses and strains in Si‐based heterostructures containing submicron‐ and micron‐size features Several reports on theoretical as well as experimental studies of stresses in the substrates with local oxidation of silicon structures on the surface have been published recently With the advent of GeXSi1−X strained layers and stripes extensive studies of both the stripe and the substrate stresses have also been made Unlike the previous calculations and analytical models, recent finite element (FE) calculations take into account the coupling between the film–substrate stresses without making the approximation that the interface is rigid or that there is no variation of stresses in the stripes in a direction perpendicular to the interface The results of these calculations have been compared with the analytical models and limitations of the analytical models have been pointed out Micro‐Raman measurements of the stresses in the stripes, quant

Stresses and strains in lattice‐mismatched stripes, quantum wires, quantum dots, and substrates in Si technology

The use of synchrotron radiation techniques in the characterization of strained semiconductor heterostructures and thin films

Electronic band structure and effective masses for relaxed and biaxially strained Si, Ge, III–V compound semiconductors (GaAs, GaSb, InAs, InSb, InP) and their alloys (InxGa1−xAs, InxGa1−xSb) on different interface orientations, (001), (110), and (111), are calculated using nonlocal empirical pseudopotential with spin-orbit interaction. Local and nonlocal pseudopotential parameters are obtained by fitting transport-relevant quantities, such as band gap and deformation potentials, to available experimental data. A cubic-spline interpolation is used to extend local form factors to arbitrary q and to obtain correct workfunctions. The nonlocal and spin-orbit terms are linearly interpolated between anions and cations for III–V semiconductors. The virtual crystal approximation is employed for the InxGa1−xAs and InxGa1−xSb alloys and deformation potentials are determined using linear deformation-potential theory. Band gap bowing parameters are extracted using least-square fitting for relaxed alloys and for strai...

Electronic band structure calculations for biaxially strained Si, Ge, and III-V semiconductors

Single‐quantum‐well structures were grown by atmospheric pressure organometallic vapor‐phase epitaxy, with GaxIn1−xAs layers (0≤x≤1) coherently strained to match the lattice parameter of the InP barrier layers in the (100) growth plane. The strain effects on the band lineups were analyzed using the ‘‘model solid’’ theory of Van de Walle and Martin. The hydrostatic strain component for alloys with x≊1 is shown to be sufficient to marginally convert the type‐II lineups for the unstrained case to type I. The band lineups remain type I for x≊0. Considering the effect of strain, the ‖ (3)/(2) , (1)/(2) 〉 valence subband becomes a slowly varying function of x. Band offsets are predicted over the entire alloy composition and compared with the reported data. The photoluminescence (10 K) peak energies for the 100‐A GaxIn1−xAs/InP single quantum wells compare quite favorably with the calculated strained band gap versus x. For nominal monolayer quantum wells, the peak energies are slightly above 1.1 eV over the enti...

T. Y. Wang

Papers

Strain effects on GaxIn1−xAs/InP single quantum wells grown by organometallic vapor‐phase epitaxy with 0≤x≤1