EFFECTS OF TRAPS AND SHALLOW ACCEPTORS ON THE STEADY-STATE PHOTOLUMINESCENCE OF QUANTUM-WELL WIRES

The effects of traps and shallow accepters on the continuous-wave stea dy-state photoluminescence of GaAs-(Ga,Al)As quantum-well wires are st udied at room temperature. The analysis is based on a quantum-mechanic al calculation of the transition rates of radiative recombinations of excited-conduction electrons with free and bound (at accepters) holes, and on a phenomenological treatment of the nonradiative rates associa ted with transitions involving conduction electrons falling into traps , and trapped electrons recombining with free holes. The various stead y-state radiative and nonradiative e-h recombination lifetimes as func tion of the cw laser intensity are then obtained, as well as the depen dence of the conduction-electron quasi-Fermi level (or chemical potent ial), and carrier densities on the laser intensity. We have also studi ed the laser-intensity dependence of various recombination efficiencie s and of the integrated photoluminescence intensity. Finally, trap and impurity effects are shown to be quite important in a quantitative un derstanding of the room temperature steady-state photoluminescence of quantum-well wires. (C) 1997 American Institute of Physics.