No Arabic abstract
We present a two-quantum well THz intersubband laser operating up to 192 K. The structure has been optimized with a non-equilibrium Greens function model. The result of this optimization was confirmed experimentally by growing, processing and measuring a number of proposed designs. At high temperature (T>200 K), the simulations indicate that lasing fails due to a combination of electron-electron scattering, thermal backfilling, and, most importantly, re-absorption coming from broadened states.
The non-equilibrium Greens function (NEGF) method with Buttiker probe scattering self-energies is assessed by comparing its predictions for the thermal boundary resistance with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. For simplicity, the interface of Si/heavy-Si is considered, where heavy-Si differs from Si only in the mass value. With Buttiker probe scattering parameters tuned against MD in homogeneous Si, the NEGF-predicted thermal boundary resistance quantitatively agrees with MD for wide mass ratios. Artificial resistances that the unaltered Landauer approach yield at virtual interfaces in homogeneous systems are absent in the present NEGF approach. Spectral information result from NEGF in its natural representation without further transformations. The spectral results show that the scattering between different phonon modes plays a crucial role in thermal transport across interfaces. Buttiker probes provide an efficient and reliable way to include anharmonicity in phonon related NEGF. NEGF including the Buttiker probes can reliably predict phonon transport across interfaces and at finite temperatures.
The understanding and modeling of inelastic scattering of thermal phonons at a solid/solid interface remain an open question. We present a fully quantum theoretical scheme to quantify the effect of anharmonic phonon-phonon scattering at an interface via non-equilibrium Greens function (NEGF) formalism. Based on the real-space scattering rate matrix, a decomposition of the interfacial spectral energy exchange is made into contributions from local and non-local anharmonic interactions, of which the former is shown to be predominant for high-frequency phonons whereas both are important for low-frequency phonons. The anharmonic decay of interfacial phonon modes is revealed to play a crucial role in bridging the bulk modes across the interface. The overall quantitative contribution of anharmonicity to thermal boundary conductance is found to be moderate. The present work promotes a deeper understanding of heat transport at the interface and an intuitive interpretation of anharmonic phonon NEGF formalism.
n-type Ge/SiGe terahertz quantum cascade laser are investigated using non-equilibrium Greens functions calculations. We compare the temperature dependence of the terahertz gain properties with an equivalent GaAs/AlGaAs QCL design. In the Ge/SiGe case, the gain is found to be much more robust to temperature increase, enabling operation up to room temperature. The better temperature robustness with respect to III-V is attributed to the much weaker interaction with optical phonons. The effect of lower interface quality is investigated and can be partly overcome by engineering smoother quantum confinement via multiple barrier heights.
Full phase control of THz emitting quantum cascade laser (QCL) combs has recently been demonstrated, opening new perspectives for even the most demanding applications. In this framework, simplifying the set-ups for control of these devices will help to accelerate their spreading in many fields. We report a new way to control the emission frequencies of a THz QCL comb by small optical frequency tuning (SOFT), using a very simple experimental setup, exploiting the incoherent emission of an ordinary white light emitting diode. The slightly perturbative regime accessible in these condition allows tweaking the complex refractive index of the semiconductor without destabilizing the broadband laser gain. The SOFT actuator is characterized and compared to another actuator, the QCL driving current. The suitability of this additional degree of freedom for frequency and phase stabilization of a THz QCL comb is shown and perspectives are discussed.
In this work, an analytic model is proposed which provides in a continuous manner the current-voltage characteristic (I-V) of high performance tunneling field-effect transistors (TFETs) based on direct bandgap semiconductors. The model provides closed-form expressions for I-V based on: 1) a modified version of the well-known Fowler-Nordheim (FN) formula (in the ON-state), and 2) an equation which describes the OFF-state performance while providing continuity at the ON/OFF threshold by means of a term introduced as the continuity factor. It is shown that traditional approaches such as FN are accurate in TFETs only through correct evaluation of the total band bending distance and the tunneling effective mass. General expressions for these two key parameters are provided. Moreover, it is demonstrated that the tunneling effective mass captures both the ellipticity of evanescent states and the dual (electron/hole) behavior of the tunneling carriers, and it is further shown that such a concept is even applicable to semiconductors with nontrivial energy dispersion. Ultimately, it is found that the I-V characteristics obtained by using this model are in close agreement with state-of-the-art quantum transport simulations both in the ON- and OFF-state, thus providing validation of the analytic approach.