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Ambipolar Lifetimes in GaAs/AlGaAs Self Electro-Optic Effect Devices

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 February 2011

V. Swaminathan ,
J. M. Freund ,
M. W. Focht ,
G. D. Guth ,
G. J. Przybylek ,
L. E. Smith ,
R. E. Leibenguth  and
L. A. D'Asaro
V. Swaminathan
Affiliation:
AT&T Bell Laboratories, 9999 Hamilton Boulevard, Breinigsville, PA 18031
J. M. Freund
Affiliation:
AT&T Bell Laboratories, 9999 Hamilton Boulevard, Breinigsville, PA 18031
M. W. Focht
Affiliation:
AT&T Bell Laboratories, 9999 Hamilton Boulevard, Breinigsville, PA 18031
G. D. Guth
Affiliation:
AT&T Bell Laboratories, 9999 Hamilton Boulevard, Breinigsville, PA 18031
G. J. Przybylek
Affiliation:
AT&T Bell Laboratories, 9999 Hamilton Boulevard, Breinigsville, PA 18031
L. E. Smith
Affiliation:
AT&T Bell Laboratories, 9999 Hamilton Boulevard, Breinigsville, PA 18031
R. E. Leibenguth
Affiliation:
AT&T Bell Laboratories, 9999 Hamilton Boulevard, Breinigsville, PA 18031
L. A. D'Asaro
Affiliation:
AT&T Bell Laboratories, 600 Mountain Avenue, Murray Hill, NJ 07974
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Abstract

The forward current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of GaAs/AlGaAs Self Electro-optic Effect Device (SEED) p-i-n diodes were measured. The I-V curves exhibited a diode like behavior with an ideality factor of 2 for voltages in the range 0.5–1.25V. In this region, the diode series resistance varied inverse proportional to the forward current with the constant of proportionality being equal to this voltage drop in the i-region. From an analysis of the experimentally obtained voltage drop, the ambipolar lifetime was determined. For the standard device whose i-region had a multi quantum well structure consisting of 60 periods of 100Å undoped GaAs wells and 65Å undoped Al0.30Ga0.70 As barriers, the ambipolar lifetime was found to be 79.6±3 psec for a 30×30 μm2 mesa device and 92 ± 4 psec for a 100×100 μm2 mesa device. When the barrier width was reduced to 35Å or when the barrier Al composition decreased to 0.2, no significant change in the ambipolar lifetime was measured. Since previous measurements have indicated that decreasing the barrier width or height greatly enhances carrier escape from the wells during the operation of the GaAs/AlGaAs p-i-n diode as a photodetector, it is inferred that the carrier escape and collection times are smaller than ∼ 80–90 psec.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 240: Symposium E – Advanced III-V Compound Semiconductor Growth, Processing and Devices , 1991 , 537
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1992

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References

REFERENCES

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