STUDY OF TEMPERATURE-DEPENDENT HYDROGENATION ON NEAR-SURFACE STRAINEDQUANTUM-WELLS

The incorporation of hydrogen by ion-gun irradiation into near-surface and deeply embedded In0.13Ga0.87As/GaAs strained quantum wells (QWs) has been studied by photoluminescence spectroscopy and transmission el ectron microscopy (TEM). Degradation in the free exciton luminescence and the appearance of hydrogen-related shallow or deep states have bee n observed within the near-surface QW after hydrogenation. This effect is more pronounced, the higher the hydrogen dose. In contrast, the de eply embedded QW is only slightly affected by the hydrogenation proces s even at high substrate temperature and hydrogen ion dose. TEM reveal s hydrogen-induced plateletlike structure in the vicinity of the near- surface QW and of the GaAs buffer layer/GaAs substrate interface after room temperature and high temperature (250-degrees-C) hydrogenation, respectively, which ascertain the extension and nature of the hydrogen -enriched regions throughout the whole material structure.