Effects of low-temperature capping on the optical properties of GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells

Nanoscale Res Lett. 2011 Jan 12;6(1):76. doi: 10.1186/1556-276X-6-76.

Abstract

We study the effects of low-temperature capping (200-450°C) on the optical properties of GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells. Photoluminescence measurements clearly show the formation of abundant nonradiative recombination centers in an AlGaAs capping layer grown at 200°C, while there is a slight degradation of the optical quality in AlGaAs capping layers grown at temperatures above 350°C compared to that of a high-temperature capping layer. In addition, the optical quality can be restored by post-growth annealing without any structural change, except for the 200°C-capped sample.