Reactive ion etched quantum wire structures for laser applications

This work presents the results of an investigation of the properties of high quality InGaAs-GaAs strained quantum well wire (QWW) structures fabricated by means of the optimized reactive ion etching technique followed by special sample treatment and metallorganic chemical vapor deposition overgrowth. Both photoluminescence (PL) and electroluminescence features were studied. The one-dimensional nature of electron-hole gas in fabricated QWWs was proved by the observation of blue shift and polarization anisotropy of PL emission lines. High efficiency of QWW luminescence was demonstrated by comparison of integrated PL intensity of QWWs with that of an unpatterned reference quantum well sample. The electro-optical properties of QWW laser structures was found to be strongly dependent on the carrier capture process, which, in turn, is determined to a great extent by the quality of the regrowth interface.