Some properties of strained InxGa1−xAs/Al0.28Ga0.72As quantum well structures studied using low temperature photoluminescence

Abstract Low temperature photoluminescence measurements were carried out on pseudomorphically strained In x Ga 1-x As-Al 0.28 Ga 0.72 As ternary-on-ternary heterostructures grown by molecular beam epitaxy to investigate the change in the transition energy, linewidth and intensity as a function of InGaAs well thickness at two different indium compositions x=0.10 and x=0.15, respectively. Sharp exciton peaks as narrow as 4-6 meV were observed from the InGaAs wells grown at 530°C with 1 min of growth interruption at the top and bottom heterointerfaces. The linewidth decreases as the well thickness is increased up to 300 A. In addition, there are signs of linewidth broadening and sharp decrease in the photoluminescence intensity at higher well thicknesses which may indicate the onset of plastic relaxation. Relatively small variations in the transition energy were observed at well thicknesses which are above the theoretical critical thickness as calculated by the Matthews-Blakeslee model [J. Cryst. Growth 27 (1974) 118], suggesting the existence of a second critical thickness value, higher than the theoretical value. Good agreement between experimental and calculated transition energy vs well thickness data was obtained, from which the conduction band offset ΔE c /ΔE g was estimated to be 0.65 ± 0.05 for x=0.10-0.15, consistent with the results derived from other techniques.