Tensile strained Ge p-i-n photodetectors on Si platform for C and L band telecommunications

Abstract

We demonstrate a 0.25% tensile strained Ge p-i-n photodetector on Si platform that effectively covers both C and L bands in telecommunications. The direct band edge of the Ge film has been pushed from 1550 to 1623 nm with 0.25% tensile strain, enabling effective photon detection in the whole L band. The responsivities of the device at 1310, 1550, and 1620 nm are 600, 520, and 100mA∕W under 0 V bias, which can be further improved to 980, 810, and 150mA∕W with antireflection coating based on calculations. Therefore, the device covers the whole wavelength range used in telecommunications. The responsivities at 1310 and 1550 nm are comparable to InGaAs photodetectors currently used in telecommunications. In the spectrum range of 1300–1650 nm, maximum responsivity was already achieved at 0 V bias because carrier transit time is much shorter than carrier recombination life time, leading to ∼100% collection efficiency even at 0 V bias. This is a desirable feature for low voltage operation. The absorption coefficients of 0.25% tensile strained Ge in the L band have been derived to be nearly an order of magnitude higher than bulk Ge. The presented device is compatible with conventional Si processing, which enables monolithic integration with Si circuitry.