Enhanced photoluminescence of heavily n-doped germanium

We show that a significant enhancement of the direct band gap photoluminescence can be achieved at room temperature in bulk Ge and Ge-on-insulator heavily n-doped by gas immersion laser doping. The photoluminescence signal from bulk Ge and Ge-on-insulator increases with the donor concentration. An enhancement factor of 20 as compared to the undoped material is achieved near the 1550 nm wavelength for active dopant concentrations around 5×1019 cm−3. These results are supported by calculations of the Ge spontaneous emission spectrum taking into account the doping effect on the electron distribution in the direct and indirect conduction band valleys.