Band Gap Thesis
Band Gap Thesis
Band Gap Thesis
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He re, alm ost all ofthe ene rg y com es fr om a photon (vertical arrow), while almost all of the
momentum comes from a phonon (horizontal arrow). Furthermore, we summarized investigations
concerning the first lasing of a direct band gap group IV semiconductor and expounded on the
temperature dependence of the PL as a powerful tool to determine the directness of a group IV
material. With a mind rooted firmly to basic principals of chemistry and passion for ever evolving
field of industrial chemistry, she is keenly interested to be a true companion for those who seek
knowledge in the subject of chemistry. For weakly strained and relaxed Ge, experimental values are
available as discussed in Section “Lifetime, Gain, and Loss.” Hence, the overall agreement of the
predictions is largely coherent. You can either rephrase your question or wait until it is less busy.
This may support current extraction and injection in optical devices. Provi ded that the area directl y
above the disloca tion loop is def ect-f ree (no non-radiati ve recomb ination possible), the electrons
will fall back into the valence shell by radia- tive recom bination, thus emitting light. By plott ing cer
tain pow ers of the absorption coe?cient against photon energy, one can normally tell both what value
the band gap has, and whether or not it is direct. This system shows lasing at low temperature (
Wirths et al., 2015 ). We will present this recent result and will, thereby, clarify the characteristic of
the experimental observation of lasing. This allows for the potential fabrication of more dense optical
circuits and, hence, for an easier integration with electronics. For short delay times, the transmission
is significantly reduced due to absorption. Moreover, the VB degeneracy is lifted depending on the
strain state and its loading, biaxial or uniaxial, c.f. Section “Modeling” for more details. However, if
the excited electrons are prevented from reaching these recombination places, they have no choice
but to eventually fall back into the valence band by radiative recombination. In contrast to external
stressors where the achievable strain is limited by the efficiency of strain transfer, this strain
enhancement is only limited by the material strength. For example, silicon is opaque to visible light
at room temperature, but transparent to red light at liquid helium temperatures, because red photons
can only be absorbed in an indirect transition. One important process is called radiative
recombination, where an electron in the conduction band annihilates a hole in the valence band,
releasing the excess energy as a photon. More evidentially, a gain statement, such as provided by
Figure 12, becomes respected only after showing lasing. Hence, for the following discussion, let us
assume that this all-group-IV laser does indeed exist and it operates (i) under electrical injection, (ii)
at RT or above, and (iii) with reasonable power conversion efficiency. In Figure 7 B, normal-
incidence transmission spectra of intrinsic Ge are plotted, while the delay time between pump and
probe is varied. For exampl e, silicon is opaque to visible light at room temperature, but transparent
to red light at liqui d helium temp eratu res, b eca use red photo ns can onl y be absorbed in an
indirect transition. Despite the high-Sn content, the thickness of the GeSn layer could be increased
up to 560 nm without deteriorating the high-crystalline quality. For the sample with the lowest Sn
content, a rapid drop in intensity on lowering the temperature is observed, whereas for the three other
samples a steady increase in intensity can be seen with the intensity increase being dependent on the
Sn concentration. As last processing step, the structure is underetched by selectively removing the
underlying buried oxide with hydrofluoric acid, c.f. Figure 5 C. Releasing the structure leads to a
relaxation of the strain in the pads, which in turn increases the strain in the constriction. Hence,
distributed feedback structures, which do not rely on patterning of the strained region, are currently
under investigation ( Marin et al., 2015 ). We assign this large discrepancy from what is observed at
low temperature and what a RT calculation predicts to resonant intervalence band absorption.
Moreover, by analyzing the carrier density at a fixed pump power for varying delay times, the
reflection spectra can be used to extract the carrier decay times. For strained and alloyed systems,
however, the interband energies approach the one of the intervalence band transitions. This is
advantageous as a high mobility strongly reduces the resistivity of the device allowing an efficient
injection and extraction of charge carriers. Silicon is the most common solar-cell material, despite the
fact that it is indirect-gap and therefore does not ab- sorb light very well. By plotting certain powers
of the absorption coefficient against photon energy, one can normally tell both what value the band
gap has, and whether or not it is direct.
The latest result ( Sukhdeo et al., 2014 ) indicates that the bridge technology can indeed provide
direct band gap strained Ge. On the other hand, thin-film solar cells are made of direct band gap
materials (such as CdTe, CIGS or CZTS), which absorb the light in a much thinner region, and
consequently can be made with a very thin active l ayer (often less than 1 micrometre thick). For
short delay times, the transmission is significantly reduced due to absorption. This building block
will finally pave the way for true monolithic on-chip integration of photonics and CMOS electronics
for new sensors in the long wavelength infrared, and will eventually enable to build an on-chip or
off-chip electro-optical data distribution network for high-performance computing. This is possible in
a direct band gap semiconductor if the electron has a k-vector near the conduction band minima (the
hole will share the same k-vector), but not possible 1. These categories are discovered depending on
the minimal energy state in the conduction band and the maximal energy state in the valence band
that are characterized by a certain crystal momentum in the Brillouin Zone. Moreover, many
electrical devices and the corresponding fabrication techniques, e.g., passivation, contacting, or
annealing, have been conceived allowing for a fast implementation in optical devices. Semantic
Scholar is a free, AI-powered research tool for scientific literature, based at the Allen Institute for
AI. You can either rephrase your question or wait until it is less busy. We conclude in Section
“Conclusion and Outlook” and give a short outlook. The fact that radiative recombination is slow in
indirect band gap materials also means that, under most circum- stances, radiative recombinations
will be a small propor- tion of total recombinations, with most recombinations being non-radiative,
taking place at point defects or at grain boundaries. This behavior is shown in Figure 13 where the
edge-emission spectra from a 1-mm long FP cavity at 20 K are plotted for varying optical excitation
powers. The k-vector of a plane wave is a vector (at least in the case of isotropic optical media) that
points in the direction in which the wave propagates. Provi ded that the area directl y above the
disloca tion loop is def ect-f ree (no non-radiati ve recomb ination possible), the electrons will fall
back into the valence shell by radia- tive recom bination, thus emitting light. On the other hand, if a
plot of versus forms a straight line, it can normally be inferred that there is an indirect band gap,
measurable by extrapolating the straight line to the axis (assuming ). Exemplarily in Figure 14, such
an injection scheme in form of a pin diode is discussed for the case of tensile strained Ge bridges
where the strain profile is shown in Figure 5 B. Upload Read for free FAQ and support Language
(EN) Sign in Skip carousel Carousel Previous Carousel Next What is Scribd. This excludes many
popular cavity designs, in particular, microdisks, photonic crystals, and FP cavities. The band gap is
called “direct” if the momentum of electrons and holes is the same in both the conduction band and
the valence band; an electron can directly emit a photon. So far, the highest strain values are
obtained in suspended microbridges under uniaxial loading as is shown on the top stroke. However,
carrier transfer to the L-valleys and carrier out diffusion into the Ge may be a determining factor, as
well. It is meant to present the current understanding evoked from the research undertaken at many
places worldwide. About 100% (0%) offset refers to 140 meV (vanishing energy offset). The
agreement between the models is generally found to be satisfactory. With a mind rooted firmly to
basic principals of chemistry and passion for ever evolving field of industrial chemistry, she is keenly
interested to be a true companion for those who seek knowledge in the subject of chemistry. For
example, silicon is opaque to visible light at room temperature, but transparent to red light at liquid
helium temperatures, because red photons can only be absorbed in an indirect transition. Hence, the
dash-dotted line marks the transition from an indirect to a direct band gap semiconductor. Hence, it
is tempting to attribute the limitation of lasing to temperatures 11 B, inset. To show the contrast to an
established laser material featuring a direct band gap, the same absorption properties are plotted in
Figure 9 C for the case of InGaAs. This may support current extraction and injection in optical
devices.
Similarly, an increase in hole mobility is expected due to the lifting of the valence band degeneracy (
Beattie and Landsberg, 1959; Fischetti and Laux, 1996 ). However, an actual impact still needs to
be proven. We renarrate this discussion at the end of this chapter. In contrast to external stressors
where the achievable strain is limited by the efficiency of strain transfer, this strain enhancement is
only limited by the material strength. The thick lines in blue and red show modeled transmission
spectra for the unpumped and pumped case. For weakly strained and relaxed Ge, experimental
values are available as discussed in Section “Lifetime, Gain, and Loss.” Hence, the overall agreement
of the predictions is largely coherent. As shown in great detail, the many optical characterization
tools at hand allow us to address a large amount of fundamental questions, including band gap
renormalization, various recombination processes, and doping level-dependent lasing performance,
but also material- and technology-related issues, such as high Q-factor cavity design, diffusive
carrier transport, stress, and thermal diffusion limits. Moreover, by analyzing the carrier density at a
fixed pump power for varying delay times, the reflection spectra can be used to extract the carrier
decay times. Silicon is the most common solar-cell material, despite the fact that it is indirect-gap and
therefore does not ab- sorb light very well. Moreover, the VB degeneracy is lifted depending on the
strain state and its loading, biaxial or uniaxial, c.f. Section “Modeling” for more details. In
unstrained, i.e., “regular” bulk Ge, however, the excited electrons will preferentially occupy the
lower conduction band energy states of the L-valley. The data are well described with a linear
absorption cross-section model. The energetic order of the heavy and light hole bands is reverted
when moving from the uniaxial to the biaxial case. For exampl e, silicon is opaque to visible light at
room temperature, but transparent to red light at liqui d helium temp eratu res, b eca use red photo ns
can onl y be absorbed in an indirect transition. However, carrier transfer to the L-valleys and carrier
out diffusion into the Ge may be a determining factor, as well. Because the emission wavelength
increases when approaching the direct band gap configuration, and the initially degenerate heavy and
light hole bands split due to strain, the parasitic absorption will strongly increase in direct band gap
systems and may, thus, obstruct the efficiency of lasing ( Wen and Bellotti, 2015 ). The authors
envision their method to enable the fabrication of direct band gap GeSn micro disks. Depending on
the strain loading, i.e., tensile or compressive, the crossover shifts to a higher or lower Sn
concentration. K-vector or wave vector is an important concept in band gaps. The tremendous
progress achieved in a short time is a shining example of our good collaboration. For the same reason
as above, light with a pho- ton energy close to the band gap can penetrate much far- ther before
being absorbed in an indirect band gap mate- rial than a direct band gap one (at least insofar as the
light absorption is due to exciting electrons across the band gap). SiN stressor layers on suspended
microbridges or FP cavities deliver far less strain and offset reductions ( Capellini et al., 2013, 2014
). As shown by the red arrows on the third stroke, alloying Ge with Sn also provides optical group
IV material with a fundamental direct band gap. Hence, distributed feedback structures, which do
not rely on patterning of the strained region, are currently under investigation ( Marin et al., 2015 ).
This can be understood from the Drude dependence of the free carrier absorption modified by dipole
allowed intervalence band transitions. This may support current extraction and injection in optical
devices. For radiative recombina- tion to occur in an indirect band gap material, the process must
also involv e the absorption or emissio n of a phonon, where the phonon momentum equals the
di?erence be- tween the electron and hole momentum. (It can also, in- stead, involve a
crystallographic defect, which performs esse ntia lly the same role.) The inv olv eme nt of the pho
non makes this process much less likely to occur in a given span of time, which is why. The fact that
radiative recombination is slow in indirect band gap materials also means that, under most
circumstances, radiative recombinations will be a small proportion of total recombinations, with most
recombinations being non-radiative, taking place at point defects or at grain boundaries. To quantify
the band offsets for the set of GeSn samples, the emission efficiency is calculated via a similar JDOS
model as the one used for calculating the gain in Figure 4. We illustrated optical methods based on
pump and probe spectroscopy using synchrotron light to determine the carrier lifetime, gain, and loss
under optical pumping related to the injected carrier density. For the sample with the lowest Sn
content, a rapid drop in intensity on lowering the temperature is observed, whereas for the three other
samples a steady increase in intensity can be seen with the intensity increase being dependent on the
Sn concentration.
For an increasing excitation power, the minimum shifts to higher energy and becomes at the same
time more pronounced. We should mention here that the theoretical analysis of Carroll et al. (2012)
has been questioned ( Dutt et al., 2012 ) concerning the strength of the gain (red line, Figure 9 B)
but not the experiments, which clearly show that the loss is by far larger than the gain. In other
works, the empirical pseudopotential method ( Dutt et al., 2013; Wen and Bellotti, 2015 ), density
functional theory ( Tahini et al., 2012 ), and the tight-binding model ( Dutt et al., 2012 ) are
employed. For strained and alloyed systems, however, the interband energies approach the one of the
intervalence band transitions. For example, silicon is opaque to visible light at room temperature, but
transparent to red light at liquid helium temperatures, because red photons can only be absorbed in
an indirect transition. We illustrated optical methods based on pump and probe spectroscopy using
synchrotron light to determine the carrier lifetime, gain, and loss under optical pumping related to
the injected carrier density. Together with the expectation that such photonic circuits will be very
cost effective, compact, reliable, and efficient, a monolithically integrated laser source will certainly
bring new functionality, in particular when optics can be merged with electronics. This vector
component is always perpendicular to the wavefronts. The resonance in the spectra is attributed to
the carrier plasma frequency, which enables to extract the total amount of charge carriers. The k-
vector of a plane wave is a vector (at least in the case of isotropic optical media) that points in the
direction in which the wave propagates. For radiative recombina- tion to occur in an indirect band
gap material, the process must also involv e the absorption or emissio n of a phonon, where the
phonon momentum equals the di?erence be- tween the electron and hole momentum. (It can also, in-
stead, involve a crystallographic defect, which performs esse ntia lly the same role.) The inv olv eme
nt of the pho non makes this process much less likely to occur in a given span of time, which is why.
Provided that the area directly above the dislocation loop is defect-free (no non-radiative
recombination possible), the electrons will fall back into the valence shell by radiative recombination
and thus emitting light. Exemplarily in Figure 14, such an injection scheme in form of a pin diode is
discussed for the case of tensile strained Ge bridges where the strain profile is shown in Figure 5 B.
The stripe length-dependent PL analysis is a widely applied technique to measure net modal gain,
but it does not allow to resolve the gain and loss as by pump and probe spectroscopy. The data are
well described with a linear absorption cross-section model. The recent advances in numerous
approaches to achieve a direct band gap have finally concluded in the first demonstration of lasing in
a direct band gap GeSn alloy ( Wirths et al., 2015 ). Its proper inclusion possibly adds significant
contribution to the loss ( Wen and Bellotti, 2015 ). We renarrate this discussion at the end of this
chapter. Without doubt, with the advent of direct band gap systems showing unambiguous lasing, an
excellent opportunity is created, which will help to unravel in the very near future above raised
questions regarding the lasing in highly n -doped Ge. For weakly strained and relaxed Ge,
experimental values are available as discussed in Section “Lifetime, Gain, and Loss.” Hence, the
overall agreement of the predictions is largely coherent. This listing can be extended almost
indefinitely, naming, e.g., switching and steering of optical signals, slow light, pulse compression,
customized reflectors, and filters. This review aims to discuss the challenges along this path in terms
of fabrication, characterization, and fundamental understanding, and will elaborate on evoking
opportunities of this new class of group IV-based laser materials. So far, experiments suggest that the
renormalization corrections are comparable for the two valleys. This can be understood from the
Drude dependence of the free carrier absorption modified by dipole allowed intervalence band
transitions. Silicon solar cells are typically hundreds of micrometres thick; if it was much thinner,
much of the light (particularly in the infrared) would simply pass through. One important process is
called radiative recombination, where an electron in the conduction band annihilates a hole in the
valence band, releasing the excess energy as a photon. Thus, the extracted carrier concentration in
dependence of the optical pump power for delay times of 0 and 250 ps is shown in the inset of
Figure 7 A. This is possible in a direct band gap semiconductor if the electron has a k-vector near the
conduction band minima (the hole will share the same k-vector), but not possible in an indirect band
gap semiconductor, as photons cannot carry crystal momentum, and thus conservation of crystal
momentum would be violated. Despite the high-Sn content, the thickness of the GeSn layer could be
increased up to 560 nm without deteriorating the high-crystalline quality. The energetic order of the
heavy and light hole bands is reverted when moving from the uniaxial to the biaxial case.