SELF-CONSISTENT DETERMINATION OF THE CONFINEMENT POTENTIAL IN VARIOUSETCHED QUANTUM-WIRE STRUCTURES

The confinement potential in etched quantum wire structures is calcula ted self-consistently as a function of the etch profile in the shallow as well as the deeply etched regime. The etching effect is taken into account by introducing surface charges at the etched semiconductor in terfaces. In single GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures a remarkable decrease of the confinement in the growth direction is found in the deeply etc hed regime depending on the wire width. The effect is explained by sid e depletion of the wire and the ionized donor layer. In GaAs/AlGaAs qu antum wells, side depletion results in an asymmetric well potential sh ifting the electronic wave function towards the top interface of the w ell.