Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 February 2011
It has been shown recently that variable angle of incidence spectroscopie ellipsometry (VASE) is a sensitive technique for determining semiconductor multilayer model parameters, e.g. layer thicknesses and ternary compositions. In this paper we show that VASE is, in addition, sensitive to the Franz-Keldysh effect induced by band bending in the barrier layer of a GaAs-AlGaAs-GaAs (MODFET) structure. VASE measurements differ from electro-reflectance and photoreflectance, in that the internal heterojunction region electric field is directly probed, without the application of a modulating field. The Franz-Keldysh effect appears in the VASE spectra near the AlGaAs bandgap energy. Data for two samples, with different doping profiles, are quantitatively modeled to determine the internal electric field amplitudes.
Supported by NASA Lewis Grant NAG-3–154.