Semiconductor and Optical Materials Commons^™

(111)-Oriented Gallium Arsenide Tensile-Strained Quantum Dots Tailored For Entangled Photon Emission, Christopher Schuck

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The use of molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) to create quantum dots (QDs) embedded in solid-state semiconductor media has been at the forefront of novel and record-breaking optoelectronic device development for many years. However, the wide range of semiconductor fabrication capabilities and the non-equilibrium growth parameters inherent to MBE mean that there are still many QD research frontiers that are yet to be explored.

This work focuses on a recently discovered method that permits, for the first time, the growth of QDs under tensile strain on non-(100) surfaces. My research explores the first (and currently only) optically active materials system for …

Optical Characterization Of Thick Growth Orientation-Patterned Gallium Arsenide, Joshua W. Meyer

Theses and Dissertations

Tunable laser sources in the mid-infrared (MIR) spectral range are required for several Air Force applications. Existing lasers with output in the near-infrared can be converted to more desirable MIR by using nonlinear effects. Orientation patterned gallium arsenide (OPGaAs) is a promising nonlinear conversion material because it has broad transparency and can be engineered for specific pump laser and output wavelengths using quasi-phase matching techniques. This research examines the optical quality of seven OPGaAs crystal samples and explores the design of an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) device. The Air Force Research Laboratory Electro-Optical Countermeasures Technology Branch obtained the samples from …

Photoluminescence Of Single Quantum Well Structures In Gallium Arsenide, Christian A. Bartholomew

Theses and Dissertations

The continued development of state-of the-art semiconductor technologies and devices by the United States Air Force and the Department of Defense requires accurate and efficient techniques to evaluate and model these new materials. Of particular interest to the Air Force are quantum well structures which can be used for small-scale laser sources in fly-by-light applications, as efficient infrared countermeasures to heat-seeking missiles, or as advanced seekers in optically guided missiles. This thesis provides the initial experimental procedures and data necessary to begin producing accurate yet robust models. Although carrier effective masses could not be evaluated using hot-electron photoluminescence, photoluminescence excitation …

Low-Temperature Molecular Beam Epitaxy Of Gaas: A Theoretical Investigation Of Antisite Incorporation And Reflection High-Energy Diffraction Oscillations, K. Natarajan, Rama Venkat, Donald L. Dorsey

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Research

Surface dynamics dominate the incorporation of charged, As+Ga, and neutral, As0Ga, antisite arsenic, and the temporal variation of reflection high-energy electron diffraction(RHEED) intensity in the low-temperature molecular beam epitaxy of (100) gallium arsenide(GaAs). A rate equation model is proposed which includes the presence and dynamics of a physisorbed arsenic (PA) layer riding the growth surface. The PA layer dictates the incorporation and concentration of As+Ga and As0Ga. Additionally, it influences the RHEED oscillations (ROs) behavior and the RO’s dependence on its coverage through its contribution to the reflected intensity. The model results for the dependence of As+Ga and As0Ga concentrations …

Luminescence Study Of Ion-Implanted And Mbe-Grown Er-Doped Gaas And AlXGa1-XAs, Jose E. Colon

Theses and Dissertations

The excitation and de-excitation mechanisms of the 1.54 microns emissions, from ion implanted and MBE grown GaAs:Er and Al_xGa_1-xAs:Er, were studied through luminescence experiments. Experimental techniques included photoluminescence, time resolved photoluminescence, and selective excitation photoluminescence. The Er³⁺ emissions were studied as a function of Er concentration, aluminum mole friction, n- and p-type doping level, and annealing temperature. In addition oxygen co-doping studies were done in order to determine the role played by oxygen in the Er³⁺ luminescence.

Excitation And De-Excitation Mechanisms Of Er-Doped Gaas And Algaas, David W. Elsaesser

Theses and Dissertations

Electrical and optical characterization have been performed on GaAs and Al_xGa_1-xAs samples doped with Er either by ion implantation or during Molecular Beam Epitaxial (MBE) growth. Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy (DLTS) and Temperature-Dependent Hall Effect (TDH) measurements indicated the presence of two hole traps in Er-doped GaAs, at 35 and 360 meV above the valence band maximum. The former (shallower) center was thought to be due to Er substituting for a Ga atom (Er_Ga) and giving rise to an isoelectronic impurity potential. The second center was attributed to an Er atom occupying an interstitial …

Fluorescent Lifetime Measurements Of Rare Earth Elements In Gallium Arsenide, Danny J. Topp

Theses and Dissertations

Lifetime measurements of the excited states of three GaAs semiconductors doped with the rare earth elements Erbium (ER), Praseodymium (Pr) , and Thulium (Tm) has been studied using a pulsed nitrogen laser and germanium detector. The measurements were made with an experimental set up with a system response time of 0.34 micro seconds. A 330 milliwatt nitrogen laser with a wavelength of 3370 angstrums was used to excite transitions of the rare earth elements.

Influence Of Copper Doping On The Performance Of Optically Controlled Gaas Switches, St. T. Ko, V. K. Lakdawala, K. H. Schoenbach, M. S. Mazzola

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The influence of the copper concentration in silicon-doped gallium arsenide on the photoionization and photoquenching of charge carriers was studied both experimentally and theoretically. The studies indicate that the compensation ratio (N_Cu/N_Si) is an important parameter for the GaAs:Si:Cu switch systems with regard to the turn-on and turn-off performance. The optimum copper concentration for the use of GaAs:Si:Cu as an optically controlled closing and opening switch is determined.

Gaas Photoconductive Closing Switches With High Dark Resistance And Microsecond Conductivity Decay, M. S. Mazzola, K. H. Schoenbach, V. K. Lakdawala, R. Germer, G. M. Loubriel, F. J. Zutavern

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Silicon-doped n-type gallium arsenide crystals, compensated with diffused copper, were studied with respect to their application as photoconductive, high-power closing switches. The attractive features of GaAs:Cu switches are their high dark resistivity, their efficient activation with Nd:YAG laser radiation, and their microsecond conductivity decay time constant. In the authors' experiment, electric fields are high as 19 kV/cm were switched, and current densities of up to 10 kA/cm² were conducted through a closely compensated crystal. At field strengths greater than approximately 10 kV/cm, a voltage `lock-on' effect was observed.

Nanosecond Optical Quenching Of Photoconductivity In A Bulk Gaas Switch, M. S. Mazzola, K. H. Schoenbach, V. K. Lakdawala, S. T. Ko

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Persistent photoconductivity in copper-compensated, silicon-doped semi-insulating gallium arsenide with a time constant as large as 30 µs has been excited by sub-band-gap laser radiation of photon energy greater than 1 eV. This photoconductivity has been quenched on a nanosecond time scale by laser radiation of photon energy less than 1 eV. The proven ability to turn the switch conductance on and off on command, and to scale the switch to high power could make this semiconductor material the basis of an optically controlled pulsed-power closing and opening switch.

An Optically Controlled Closing And Opening Semiconductor Switch, K. H. Schoenbach, V. K. Lakdawala, R. Germer, S. T. Ko

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

A concept for a bulk semiconductor switch is presented, where the conductivity is increased and reduced, respectively, through illumination with light of different wavelengths. The increase in conductivity is accomplished by electron ionization from deep centers and generation of bound holes. The reduction of conductivity is obtained by hole ionization from the excited centers and subsequent recombination of free electrons and holes. The transient behavior of electron and hole density in a high power semiconductor (GaAs:Cu) switch is computed by means of a rate equation model. Changes in conductivity by five orders of magnitude can be obtained.