AN OPTICAL STUDY OF INTERDIFFUSION IN ZNSE ZNCDSE/

This letter presents a study of intermixing in ZnSe/ZnCdSe quantum wel l structures, using repetitive thermal annealing with photoluminescenc e measurements. An improvement in the optical quality of the samples w as found for anneals at temperatures (similar to 500 degrees C) for wh ich macroscopic intermixing is not observed. The interdiffusion proces s of this system was found to be Fickian with no dependence on alloy c omposition or strain. An activation energy of 2.3 +/- 0.2 eV was obtai ned for the interdiffusion process over a 250 K temperature range and four decades of interdiffusion coefficient. (C) 1996 American Institut e of Physics.