Theoretical studies of the optoelectronic properties of semiconductor quantum wells
Chao, Calvin Yi-Ping
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/19093
Description
Title
Theoretical studies of the optoelectronic properties of semiconductor quantum wells
Author(s)
Chao, Calvin Yi-Ping
Issue Date
1992
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Chuang, Shun-Lien
Department of Study
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Discipline
Electrical Engineering
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Engineering, Electronics and Electrical
Physics, Electricity and Magnetism
Physics, Condensed Matter
Language
eng
Abstract
The valence-band structure of a semiconductor quantum well is calculated based on the multiband effective-mass theory. A unitary transformation is found to diagonalize the six-by-six Luttinger-Kohn Hamiltonian into two three-by-three blocks, making the computation more efficient. With this new formulation, the effect of strain on the band structure is studied systematically for both the compressional and tensile strain. The importance of the coupling between the heavy-hole, light-hole bands and the spin-orbit split-off bands is especially pointed out.
The resonant tunneling of holes through a double-barrier structure is investigated using a transfer-matrix technique. It is shown that the strong mixing between the heavy holes and the light holes results in a totally different I-V characteristic from that predicted previously by the parabolic-band model.
The exciton equation in momentum space is solved by using a modified Gaussian quadrature method. The exact solutions for a pure-two-dimensional exciton are derived by means of the Mehler-Fock transform, and the accuracy of the quadrature method is checked by comparing the numerical solutions against the exact solutions.
A complete theory for quantum-well excitons is developed taking into account the effects of the valence-band mixing and the intersubband Coulomb interaction. Optical absorption spectra are calculated and compared to experimental data. The comparison demonstrates that the theory explains very well the quantum-confined Stark effect, the polarization selection rule, the coupling between the interwell and intrawell excitons in a multiwell structure, and the anticrossing between the ground state of a light-hole exciton and the excited state of a heavy-hole exciton observed experimentally.
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