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Physica E 17 (2003) 22 23
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Strong graded interface related exciton energy blueshift in

Inx Ga1x N=GaN quantum dots
E.W.S. Caetano, M.V. Mesquita, V.N. Freire , G.A. Farias
Departamento de F sica, Universidade Federal do Ceara, Caixa Postal 6030, Campus do Pici, 60455-900 Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil

Abstract

The role of graded interfaces on the carrier con0nement and exciton properties of wurtzite Inx Ga1x N=GaN quantum
dots is investigated. The internal electric 0eld inside the dot generated by the spontaneous and piezoelectric polarizations is
considered, as well as the existence of graded interfaces, which reduces the strain. It is shown that the existence of graded
interfaces enhances appreciably the energies of the con0ned carriers and excitons. Graded interface related blueshifts of the
electronheavy hole con0ned exciton energy is demonstrated to be as high as 150 meV for quantum dot sizes ranging from
30 to 90 A4 and interface thicknesses varying from 5 to 15 A. 4
? 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Inx Ga1x N=GaN quantum dots; Graded interface; Con0ned excitons; Strain e8ects

1. Introduction Recently, the possibility of strong weakening e8ects

The existence of In-rich phases or clusters in InGaN
epitaxial layers as a consequence of segregation e8ects
was experimentally demonstrated [1]. These In-rich
clusters form quantum dot-like structures inside
InGaN/GaN quantum wells. Carrier recombination
taking place at these InN quantum dots could explain
some singular optical properties of these heterostruc-
tures, like light emission with energy below the alloy
band gap, and the negligible in<uence of defects on
the carrier recombination e=ciency [2,3]. On the other
hand, the existence of 10 A 4 thick graded interfaces in
AlGaN/InGaN/GaN quantum wells has been shown
[4]. This justi0es the assumption of the existence of
graded (non-abrupt) interfaces in InN quantum dots.
Corresponding author. Tel.: +55-85-2889937; fax: +55-85-
2874138.
E-mail address: valder@0sica.ufc.br (V.N. Freire).
on exciton con0nement in Inx Ga1x N=GaN quantum
wells was demonstrated, which is due to the existence
of graded interfaces [5].
The purpose of this work is to investigate the role
of graded interfaces on the con0ned carrier and exci-
tons in Inx Ga1x N=GaN spherical quantum dots. The
internal electric 0eld generated by the piezoelectric
and spontaneous polarizations is taken into account,
as well as the existence of graded interfaces, which
reduces the strain, the main responsible for the huge
piezoelectric 0elds inside the dots [6]. It is shown that
the existence of graded interfaces enhances apprecia-
bly the energies of the con0ned carriers and excitons
in Inx Ga1x N=GaN spherical quantum dots.
2. The graded Inx Ga1x N=GaN model
An error-like pro0le for the InN molar fraction vari-
ation through the interface region of thickness  in

1386-9477/03/$ - see front matter ? 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/S1386-9477(02)00709-9
 E.W.S. Caetano et al. / Physica E 17 (2003) 22 23
Fig. 1. Exciton energy (top) and exciton energy blueshift (bottom)
of In0:22 Ga0:78 N=GaN spherical quantum dots of radius R and
di8erent interface thicknesses.
a spherical wurtzite Inx Ga1x N=GaN graded dot of
radius R was assumed, allowing to obtain the con0ne-
ment potential. The spontaneous and piezoelectric po-
larizations were taken into account, which gave rise
to a very strong built-in electric 0eld inside the dots
(smoothed, however, due to the graded interface), that
redshifts the con0ned carriers energies. The electron
heavy hole (ehh) exciton energy calculations were
performed within the e8ective mass approximation us-
ing a method similar to the one of Ref. [7]. A value
for x equal to 0.22 was assumed, and the InN and GaN
data used in the calculations were taken from Ref. [5].
3. The strong graded interface related blueshift
The dependence of the ehh exciton energy EEXC
on the In0:22 Ga0:78 N=GaN dot radius for interface
23
thicknesses  = 0 A 4 (solid line), 5 A
4 (dashed), 10 A 4
(dotted), and 15 A4 (dashed dotted) is presented in Fig.
1 (top). The strong quantum con0ned Stark e8ect due
to the polarizations is responsible for an almost linear
decrease of the exciton energy with the dot increasing
radius. The existence of a graded interface strongly
blueshifts EEXC , as can be observed through the be-
havior of the exciton energy shift as a function of the
dot radius R and interface thickness , JEEXC (R; )
presented in the bottom of Fig. 1. Graded interfaces
5 and 10 A 4 thin can blueshift the ground state ehh
exciton energy in a spherical In0:22 Ga0:78 N=GaN dot
of radius 50 A 4 by as much as 75 and 150 meV,
respectively.
Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge the 0nancial support
received from CAPES, the Brazilian Research Coun-
cil (CNPq) under contract NanoSemiMat/CNPq #
550.015/01-9, and the Ministry of Planning (FINEP)
under contract CTPETRO/FINEP # 65.00.02.80.00.
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