The optical linewidth of InGaN light emitting diodes

A comparative study of the optical linewidths of high-quality InGaN epilayers and commercial single quantum well light emitting diode structures was undertaken using photo- and electroluminescence. Optical linewidths show a linear increase with increasing indium concentration in both cases. We assess the contribution of three mechanisms to the luminescence linewidth: alloy fluctuations, well width fluctuations and strain effects. It is found that the broadening of the emission line is an intrinsic property of InGaN alloys. The piezoelectric effect in wurtzite semiconductors is proposed as a novel line-broadening mechanism.