Progress in the room-temperature optical functions of semiconductors

Optical functions of a specific semiconductor in a particular wavelength region are often needed in optics and optoelectronics research. Basic optical properties of some materials are available in handbooks, but recent advances in the experimental techniques for growth, sample preparation and determination of optical functions, as well as theoretical advances in modeling the optical functions, prompted demand for a review of the state of the art of the optical functions of some important semiconductor materials. This paper gives an overview of the experimental methods for the determination of optical functions in the 1–6 eV spectral range and the available models for calculating the optical functions. Also, the paper summarizes the progress in the study of optical functions of several important semiconductors such as GaP, InP, InAs, GaSb, InSb, AlSb, AlxGa1−xAs, HgxCd1−xTe, SixGe1−x, GaN, InN, AlN, 6H–SiC, and ZnO. Besides discussing the available data and expected positions of optical transitions, the paper focuses on the model of the dielectric function which allows reproducing accurately the experimental dielectric function values for all the materials considered here.