Vm. Fomin et Ep. Pokatilov, OPTICAL-PROPERTIES OF MULTILAYER STRUCTURES .4. NONLINEAR ABSORPTION OF LIGHT IN MULTILAYER STRUCTURES, Physica status solidi. b, Basic research, 176(2), 1993, pp. 355-364
The theory of non-linear response of an electronic subsystem in planar
multi-layer structures (including quantum wells) to a strong electrom
agnetic field is developed. On the basis of the exact Hamiltonian of t
he electron-phonon interaction for such structures a non-linear dielec
tric permittivity tensor is obtained by the statistical operator metho
d in the path integration representation. In the three-layer structure
s with a thin middle semiconducting layer and moderate values of the d
ielectric permittivity of the outer dielectric media the contribution
to the absorption due to the interaction of electrons with surface pho
nons is found to prevail over that of bulk phonons and to ensure a sub
stantially more rapid rise in the absorption coefficient with increasi
ng intensity in comparison with the case of a semiconductor crystal.