Conduction band offset and electron effective mass in GaInNAs/GaAs quantum-well structures with low nitrogen concentration

Abstract

We have investigated the optical transitions in Ga1−yInyNxAs1−x/GaAs single and multiple quantum wells using photovoltaic measurements at room temperature. From a theoretical fit to the experimental data, the conduction band offset Qc, electron effective mass me*, and band gap energy Eg were estimated. It was found that the Qc is dependent on the indium concentration, but independent on the nitrogen concentration over the range x=(0–1)%. The me* of GaInNAs is much greater than that of InGaAs with the same concentration of indium, and increases as the nitrogen concentration increases up to 1%. Our experimental results for the me* and Eg of GaInNAs are quantitatively explained by the two-band model based on the strong interaction of the conduction band minimum with the localized N states.