Superlinear electroluminescence in GaSb-based heterostructures with high potential barriers

• Published in: Semiconductors (Woodbury, N.Y.) Vol. 47; no. 1; pp. 73 - 80
• Main Authors: Kalinina, K. V., Mikhailova, M. P., Zhurtanov, B. E., Stoyanov, N. D., Yakovlev, Yu. P.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht SP MAIK Nauka/Interperiodica 2013; Springer
• Subjects: Epitaxy; Ionization; Light-emitting diodes; Low-Dimensional Systems; Magnetic Materials; Magnetism; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Quantum Phenomena; Semiconductor Structures; Semiconductors; Toy industry; GaSb; Pump Current; Impact Ionization; Optical Power; Auger Recombination
• ISSN: 1063-7826; 1090-6479
• DOI: 10.1134/S1063782613010144

The electroluminescence in isotype and anisotype light-emitting diode heterostructures grown by the method of liquid-phase epitaxy with large conduction-band offset Δ
E
c
at the heterointerface between a narrow-band active region and a wide-band layer is studied. Two types of electroluminescence peaks are observed in the range of photon energies 0.28–0.74 eV at temperatures
T
= 300 and 77 K; in this case, a super-linear increase in the intensity and optical power of emission by a factor of 1.5–2 is observed in the range of pump currents 20–220 mA. This effect is attributed to the formation of additional electron-hole pairs as a result of impact ionization by hot electrons heated as a result of the band offset Δ
E
c
in the conduction band at the
n
-AlGaAsSb/
n
-InGaAsSb and
n
-GaSb/
n
-InGaAsSb heteroboundaries. This effect can be used to increase the quantum efficiency of semiconductor emitters (light-emitting diodes, lasers) in the mid-infrared region.