The spin-splitting energy in wurtzite structure semiconductors had been investigated by linear combination of atomic orbital method (LCAO), atomic bond orbital method and two-band k¡Ep method. In order to explain the large zero field spin splitting in wurtzite GaN, a different mechanism (£GC1¡V£GC3 coupling) was proposed, which originated from the intrinsic wurtzite effects (band folding and wurtzite bulk inversion asymmetry). The band-folding effect generates two conduction bands (£GC1 and £GC3), in which p-wave probability has tremendous change when kz approaches the anticrossing zone. The spin-splitting energy induced by the£GC1¡V£GC3 coupling and wurtzite bulk inversion asymmetry is much larger than theory calculation of Kane model. When we apply the coupling to GaN/AlN quantum wells, we find that the spin-splitting energy is sensitively controllable by an electric field. It is also found that ideal wurtzite bulk inversion asymmetry yields not only a spin-degenerate line (along the kz axis; time reversal axis) but also a minimum-spin-splitting surface, which can be regarded as a spin-degenerate surface in the form of bkz2- k//2=0 (b≈4) near the £F point. This phenomenon is referred to as the Dresselhaus effect (defined as the cubic-in-k term) in bulk wurtzite materials because it generates a term £^wz(bkz2- k//2)(£mxky-£mykx)=0 in the two-band k¡Ep Hamiltonian. And it is also demonstrated that in the k.p scheme, the spin splitting vanishes to cubic order in k. Consequently, the D¡¦yakonov-Perel¡¦ (DP) spin relaxation mechanism can be effectively suppressed for all spin components in [001] wurtzite quantum wells (QWs) at a resonance condition through device design with appropriate strain, gate voltage or optical illumination. In conclusion: (1) the spin-splitting energy is enhance by wurtzite bulk inversion asymmetry; (2) the spin-splitting energy in wurtzite quantum well is sensitively controllable by electric field; (3) there exist a spin degenerate surface for wurtzite materials in k¡Ep scheme. Therefore, wurtzite QWs (e.g., InGaN/AlGaN and InN/AlInN) are potential candidates for spintronic devices such as the resonant spin lifetime transistor.

A simple theoretical method for calculating electronic band structures of wurtzite materials based on the bond-orbital models is presented. This method can be used to study many problems such as band mixing and effects of external fields (electric field, magnetic field, and unaxial stress, etc.), since it can reproduce fairly accurate lowest conduction-band and top three valence-band structures. This method is very similar to LCAO method; however, it is much simpler and requires less computational effort than LCAO method.

Please read the abstract in the front of the document. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Physics / unrestricted

Photodetectors are semiconductor devices that can convert optical signals into electrical signals. There is a wide range of photodetector applications such as fiber optics communication, infrared heat camera sensors, as well as in equipment used for medical and military purposes. Nanowires are thin needle-shaped structures made of semiconductor materials, e.g. gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP) or silicon (Si). Their small size, well-controlled crystal structure and composition as well as the possibility to fabricate them monolithically on silicon make them ideally suited for sensitive photodetectors with low noise. In this project, Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy is used to investigate the optical characteristics of InP nanowire-based PIN photodetectors. The corresponding electrical characteristics are also measured using very sensitive instrumentation. A total of 4 samples consisting of processed nanowires with 80 nm diameter but different density and length have been examined. The experiments were conducted from 78K (-196oC) to room temperature 300K (27oC). The spectrally resolved photocurrent and current-voltage (IV) curves (in darkness & under illumination) for different temperatures have been studied and analyzed. The samples show excellent IV performance with very low leakage currents. The photocurrent scales with the number of nanowires, from which we conclude that most photocurrent is generated in the substrate. Spectrally resolved photocurrent data, recorded at different temperatures, display strong absorption in the near-infrared region with interesting peaks that reveal the underlying optical processes in the substrate and nanowires, respectively. The nature of the absorption peaks is discussed in detail. This study is an important step towards integration of optically efficient III-V nanoscale devices on cheap silicon substrates for applications e.g. on-chip optical communication and solar cells for energy harvesting.

A simple theoretical method for calculating electronic band structure of wurtzite materials based on the linear combination of orbital model is presented. To abtain better description of the conduction band structures, second-nearest-neighbor s and p state interaction are included. We suggest that the zinc-blende InN has a direct band gap of ~2 eV and an indirect band gap of ~0.7 eV located at L-points. Due to band folding effect, the wurtzite InN thus has a direct band gap of ~0.7 eV located at £F3-point.

No description available.

A systematic investigation into the growth of one-dimensional nanostructures of select II-VI compounds with the wurtzite crystal structure. Two process parameters are systematically altered to observe how each affects deposition. The results of which give a further understanding into the formation of one nanostructure over another, as well as experimental parameters for optimizing the growth of particular CdSe nanomaterials. A statistical analysis is conducted on the experimental data to quantitatively determine the variability and robustness of the experimental setup and process. The information complied from this extensive study will yield a more complete understanding of the experimental setup and how improvements can be made to reduce variability, increase yield, and gain insight into the mechanisms controlling this class of materials.

The spin-splitting energies in strained bulk wurtzite aluminum nitride (AlN) are studied using the linear combination of atomic orbital method. It is found that strain and crystal field induce not only a linear-k (£\wz ) but also two cubic-k terms (£^¡¦and £f¡¦ ) in the two-band k¡Dp Hamiltonian Hso=(£\wz-£^¡¦k2//+£f¡¦k2z)(£mxky-£mykx)+H0so, where H0so=(-£^0k2//+£f0k2z)(£mxky-£mykx) is for ideal wurtzite and generates a cone-shaped minimum-spin-splitting (MSS) surface. As biaxial strain increases, the shape of the MSS surface changes from a hexagonal hyperboloid of two sheets in unstrained AlN to a hexagonal cone, and eventually becomes a hyperboloid of one sheet. The spin-splitting energies of first conduction band for A-plane and M-plane wurtzite are calculated by the sp3 linear combination of atomic orbital (LCAO). The results show the spin-splitting energies are dominated by linear-k term but contribution of cubic-k terms can not be neglected for larger k//. The parameter of linear-k and cubic-k terms are evaluated from the LCAO calculated spin-splitting energies fitting to two band k¡Ep model as increasing well width. The coefficients of linear-k and cubic-k terms decrease.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:30:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2010-07-07Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T18:47:33Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 ribeiro_av_me_bauru.pdf: 3385358 bytes, checksum: 8e2e43e5facbedc0c7e25a21e63fe6ac (MD5) / São calculadas as estruturas eletrônicas de arranjos atômicos periódicos unidimensionais, bidimensionais e tridimensionais, através do método de combinação linear de orbitais atômicos (método tight binding). Esses orbitais correspondem aos átomos isolados das espécies químicas que compõem o arranjo atômico sob investigação. Combinações lineares deles, com coeficientes apropriados, aproximam a forma das funções de onda eletrônicas do arranjo atômico. Nos casos em que a sobreposição dos orbitais é desprezada, a contribuição de cada orbital atômico para função de Bloch é mostrada nas representações gráficas das estruturas de bandas calculadas. Após uma brve apresentação do método tight binding, são calculadas as estruturas de bandas de cadeias lineares de átomos de Carbono que têm um ou dois átomos por célula unitária. Essas cadeias são chamadas de cumuleno e poliino, respectivamente. Dentre os arranjos atômicos bidimensionais de interesse, é calculada a estrutura de bandas do grafeno. Essas energias são comparadas com resultados disponíveis na literatura. Para este material é realizada uma breve discussão sobre as bandas 'pi' provenientes de orbitais 'p IND. z' e sobre como a sobreposição dos orbitais atômicos afeta a forma das bandas. O método também é aplicado na modelagem de cristais tridimensionais. São calculadas as estruturas de bandas doo diamante, Germânio (com estrutura de diamente), Arseneto de Gálio (com estrutura zincblend) e Nitreto de Gálio (com estrutura de wurtzita). Os resultados obtidos são comparados com aqueles reportados por outros autores que usaram métodos ab initio / The eletronic structures of periodic arrangements of atoms in one, two and three dimensions are calculated by a linear combinations of atomic orbitals (tight binding method). Those orbitals correspond to the isolated atoms of the chemical species composing the atomic arrangement under investigation. Suitable linear combinations of such states approximate the shape of the eletronic wave functions of the atomic arrangement. When the overlapping of the atomic orbitals is disregarded, the contribution of each orbital to the Bloch state is displayed in the graphs of the band structures. After a brief description of the tight binding method, the band structures of linear chains of Carbon atoms are calculated. The cases of one and two atoms per unit cell are considered. They correspond to cumulene and polyyne, respectively. Among the two-dimensional atomic arrangements of interest, we focus the calculation of the band structure of graphene. The calculated bands are compared with available results. Some attention is devoted to the 'pi' bands associated to the 'p IND. z' orbitals is presented. The effects of the overlapping of the atomic orbitals are discussed. The method is also applied to model three-dimensional crystels. The band structures of diamong, germanium (with diamond structure), Gallium Arsenide (with zincblende structure) and Gallium Nitride (with wurtzite structure) are obtained. The results are compared with those reported by other authors who applied ab initio methods

abstract: The work contained in this dissertation is focused on the optical properties of direct band gap semiconductors which crystallize in a wurtzite structure: more specifically, the III-nitrides and ZnO. By using cathodoluminescence spectroscopy, many of their properties have been investigated, including band gaps, defect energy levels, carrier lifetimes, strain states, exciton binding energies, and effects of electron irradiation on luminescence. Part of this work is focused on p-type Mg-doped GaN and InGaN. These materials are extremely important for the fabrication of visible light emitting diodes and diode lasers and their complex nature is currently not entirely understood. The luminescence of Mg-doped GaN films has been correlated with electrical and structural measurements in order to understand the behavior of hydrogen in the material. Deeply-bound excitons emitting near 3.37 and 3.42 eV are observed in films with a significant hydrogen concentration during cathodoluminescence at liquid helium temperatures. These radiative transitions are unstable during electron irradiation. Our observations suggest a hydrogen-related nature, as opposed to a previous assignment of stacking fault luminescence. The intensity of the 3.37 eV transition can be correlated with the electrical activation of the Mg acceptors. Next, the acceptor energy level of Mg in InGaN is shown to decrease significantly with an increase in the indium composition. This also corresponds to a decrease in the resistivity of these films. In addition, the hole concentration in multiple quantum well light emitting diode structures is much more uniform in the active region when Mg-doped InGaN (instead of Mg-doped GaN) is used. These results will help improve the efficiency of light emitting diodes, especially in the green/yellow color range. Also, the improved hole transport may prove to be important for the development of photovoltaic devices. Cathodoluminescence studies have also been performed on nanoindented ZnO crystals. Bulk, single crystal ZnO was indented using a sub-micron spherical diamond tip on various surface orientations. The resistance to deformation (the "hardness") of each surface orientation was measured, with the c-plane being the most resistive. This is due to the orientation of the easy glide planes, the c-planes, being positioned perpendicularly to the applied load. The a-plane oriented crystal is the least resistive to deformation. Cathodoluminescence imaging allows for the correlation of the luminescence with the regions located near the indentation. Sub-nanometer shifts in the band edge emission have been assigned to residual strain the crystals. The a- and m-plane oriented crystals show two-fold symmetry with regions of compressive and tensile strain located parallel and perpendicular to the ±c-directions, respectively. The c-plane oriented crystal shows six-fold symmetry with regions of tensile strain extending along the six equivalent a-directions. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Physics 2013