Characteristics of GaInAs/AlInAs quantum well laser ——Effect of intervalence band absorption on differential quantum efficiency and characteristic temperature

The intervalence band absorption(IVBA) coefficient in the lattice-matched GaInAs/AlInAs semiconductor quantum well laser (QWL) and its effect on differential quantum efficiency ( η 0) and the characteristic temperature ( T 0) are calculated and analyzed. It is shown that the IVBA coefficient decreases with the increase of band gap and increases with the increase of temperature and carrier density. The trend of temperature variation of threshold current and differential quantum efficiency caused by IVBA coefficient is similar to that observed in the experiment,though it is not significant numerically. Therefore, the IVBA,a kind of temperature sensitive photon loss mechanism,won't be able to play a dominant role in temperature effect of long wavelength semiconductor lasers.