Quantum wells, wires & dots

Presented By-: Mohammad Rameez & Balaji Venkatesan

Quantum confinement
Trap particles and restrict their motion Quantum confinement produces new material behavior/phenomena Engineer confinement- control for specific applications Structures
Quantum dots (0-D) only confined states, and no freely moving ones Nanowires (1-D) particles travel only along the wire Quantum wells (2-D) confines particles within a thin layer

http://www.me.berkeley.edu/nti/englander1.ppt http://phys.educ.ksu.edu/vqm/index.html

(Scientific American)

Quantum Confinement
Excitons have an average physical separation between the electron and hole, referred to as the Exciton Bohr Radius this physical distance is different for each material. In bulk, the dimensions of the semiconductor crystal are much larger than the Exciton Bohr Radius, allowing the exciton to extend to its natural limit. However, if the size of a semiconductor crystal becomes small enough that it approaches the size of the material's Exciton Bohr Radius, then the electron energy levels can no longer be treated as continuous - they must be treated as discrete, meaning that there is a small and finite separation between energy levels. This situation of discrete energy levels is called quantum confinement .

Quantum Confinement in Nanostructures Confined in:

1 Direction: Quantum well (thin film) Two-dimensional electrons

nz ky kx

2 Directions: Quantum wire

ny kx nz nz

One-dimensional electrons

3 Directions: Quantum dot

Zero-dimensional electrons
ny

nx

Each confinement direction converts a continuous k in a discrete quantum number n.

Some Basic Physics

Density of states (DoS) dN dN dk DoS dE dk dE
in 3D:

k space vol N (k ) vol per state 4 3 k 3 (2 ) 3 V

Structure Degree of Confinement 0D 1D 2D 3D

Bulk Material Quantum Well Quantum Wire Quantum Dot

dN dE E
1

1/ E
d(E)

Quantum Dots

What are Quantum Dots??

A quantum dot is a semiconductor whose excitons are confined in all three spatial dimensions. As a result, they have properties that are between those of bulk semiconductors and those of discrete molecules.

A crystal of semiconductor compound (eg. CdSe, PbS) with a diameter on the order of the compound's Exciton Bohr Radius. Quantum dots are between 2 and 10 nanometers wide (10 and 50 atoms).
An electromagnetic radiation emitter with an easily tunable bandgap.

Continued
In an unconfined (bulk) semiconductor, an electron-hole pair is typically bound within a characteristic length called the Bohr exciton radius. If the electron and hole are constrained further, then the semiconductor's properties change. This effect is a form of quantum confinement, and it is a key feature in many emerging electronic structures.The Quantum dot is such an electronic structure which is based on the principle of Quantum confinement.

Artificial Atoms

Quantum Dots are more closely related to individual atoms rather than bulk materials because of their discrete quantized energy levels instead of energy bands. Therefore they are also known as artificial atoms.
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Why Q Dots?
Traditional semiconductors have shortcomings, they lack versatility.

Their optical and electronic qualities are costly to adjust, because their bandgap cannot be easily changed. Their emission frequencies cannot be easily manipulated by engineering. Q Dots exist in a quantum world, where properties are modulated according to needs. Technological advancements have made it possible to make semiconductors with tunable bandgaps, allowing for unique optical and electronic properties and a broad range of emission frequencies.

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Quantum Dots - A tunable range of energies

Because quantum dots' electron energy levels are discrete rather than continuous, the addition or subtraction of just a few atoms to the quantum dot has the effect of altering the boundaries of the bandgap.

Changing the geometry of the surface of the quantum dot also changes the bandgap energy, owing again to the small size of the dot, and the effects of quantum confinement.

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Fabrication Of Quantum Dots

Q Dots can be synthesized in different ways, these are ----Colloidal Synthesis: Three components precursors, organic
surfactants, and solvents In this form of synthesis precursor molecules are dissolved in solvent. Solution is then heated at large temperature to start creating monomers. Once the monomers reach a high enough super saturation level, the Nano crystal growth starts with a nucleation process by rearranging and annealing of atoms. For this process the temperature control is necessary. And is done via heat or laser. Due to strong quantum confinement, the nanocrystals show size-tunable absorption and luminescence. By control of the surface chemistry, we produced photo chemically stable nanocrystals

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Fabrication Continued
Viral Assembly: In 2002 it was found that using genetically
engineered M13 bacteriophage virusesQ Dots can be created. It is known that viruses can recognize specific semiconductor surfaces Through the method of selection by combinatorial phage display. Therefore using this property and controlling the solution ionic strength and by applying outside magnetic field we can create nanocrystals in a controlled environment.

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Fabrication Continued..

Electrochemical Assembly: Highly ordered arrays of quantum dots may also

be self-assembled by electrochemical techniques. A template is created by causing an ionic reaction at an electrolyte-metal interface which results in the spontaneous assembly of nanostructures, including quantum dots, onto the metal which is then used as a mask for mesa-etching these nanostructures on a chosen substrate.

Cadmium-free quantum dots CFQD: In many regions of the world there is

now a restriction or ban on the use of heavy metals in many household goods which means that most cadmium based quantum dots are unusable for consumer-goods applications. A range of restricted, heavy metal-free quantum dots has been developed showing bright emissions in the visible and near infrared region of the spectrum and have similar optical properties to those of CdSe quantum dots.

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Applications and uses

Information

processing and Computing

Quantum dots have also been implemented as qubits for quantum information processing.By applying small voltages to the leads, the flow of electrons through the quantum dot can be controlled and thereby precise measurements of the spin and other properties therein can be made. With several entangled quantum dots,or qubits, plus a way of performing operations, quantum calculations and the computers that would perform them might be possible.

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Applications and uses

Biology

and Medicinal sciences:

Qdots replacing organic dyes,

Usage of quantum dots for highly sensitive cellular imaging, Extraordinary photostability of quantum dot probes is the real-time tracking of molecules and cells over extended periods of time, thus is used cancer technology

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Applications and uses

Photovoltaic

devices And Nano crystal solar cell

Semiconductor nanoparticles that exhibit size and compositionally tunable bandgaps. Therefore, different types and sizes of quantum dots, engineered to perfectly match and absorb the light of the solar spectrum, can be brought together into the same cell Alternative quantum dot based solar cells approaches including, luminescent concentrator cells, quantum dot dye sensitized solar cells, multiple exciton generation, and intermediate band solar cells.

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Applications and uses

Electronic

applications they have been proven to operate like a single-electron transistor and show the Coulomb blockade effect Security inks
Due to its Colloidal properties Q Dots can be mixed into inks which incorporate quantum dots, nanoscale semiconductor particles,which can be tuned to emit light at specific wavelengths in the visible and infrared portion of the spectra
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Applications and uses

Security Ink with Q Dots emmiting green light. Combining multiple quantum dots and other pigments to create unique fluorescent spectral barcodes that identify any object or document upon illuminated

Quantum Wire

Introduction
1D nanostructures represent the smallest dimension structure that can efficiently transport electrical carriers 1D nanostructures can also exhibit critical device function, and thus can be exploited as both the wiring and device elements in future architectures for functional nanosystems In this regard, two material classes: semiconductor nanowires (NWs) carbon nanotubes (NTs) have shown particular promise

Background
What is Quantum Wire?
A strip of conducting material about 10nm or less in width and thickness that displays quantum mechanical effects.
- from Science and Technology Dictionary

Fig. 3. Illustration of carbon nanotube from www.spacedaily.com/news/nanotech-05zn.html

Essential Difference?
Not copying quantum info, but transported-destroy at source then recreating at destination.
Fig. 4. A carbon nanotube between two electrodes from http://www.mb.tn.tudelft.nl

Why nanowires?
They represent the smallest dimension for efficient transport of electrons and excitons, and thus will be used as interconnects and critical devices in nanoelectronics and nanooptoelectronics. (CM Lieber, Harvard)
General attributes & desired properties Diameter 10s of nanometers Single crystal formation -- common crystallographic orientation along the nanowire axis Minimal defects within wire Minimal irregularities within nanowire arrays

Nanowire fabrication
Challenging! Template assistance Electrochemical deposition
Ensures fabrication of electrically continuous wires since only takes place on conductive surfaces Applicable to a wide range of materials

High pressure injection

Limited to elements and heterogeneously-melting compounds with low melting points Does not ensure continuous wires Does not work well for diameters < 30-40 nm

CVD Laser assisted techniques

Magnetic nanowires
Important for storage device applications Cobalt, gold, copper and cobalt-copper nanowire arrays have been fabricated Electrochemical deposition is prevalent fabrication technique <20 nm diameter nanowire arrays have been fabricated
Cobalt nanowires on Si substrate
(UMass Amherst, 2000)

http://www.me.berkeley.edu/nti/englander1.ppt

Quantum and localization of nanowire conductance

Nanoscale size exhibits the following properties different from those found in the bulk: quantized conductance in point contacts and narrow channels whose characteristics (transverse) dimensions approach the electronic wave length Localization phenomena in low dimensional systems Mechanical properties characterized by a reduced propensity for creation and propagation of dislocations in small metallic samples. Conductance of nanowires depend on the length, lateral dimensions, state and degree of disorder and elongation mechanism of the wire.

NanoElectronic Applications of nanowires

The most important application of nanowires in nanoelectronics is using them as junctions or as multi-segment nanowires or crossed nanodevices.

Potential application of nanowires is in:

very dense logic dense memory optoelectronics sensing devices

Quantum wells

Quantum wells
A quantum well is a potential well that confines particles, which were originally free to move in three dimensions, to two dimensions. forcing them to occupy a planar region. The effects of quantum confinement take place when the quantum well thickness becomes comparable at the de Broglie wavelength of the carriers (generally electrons and holes), leading to energy levels called "energy subbands", i.e., the carriers can only have discrete energy values.

2-D Quantum Confinement

Bulk Semiconductors Epitaxial Layers

B
Conduction Bands

A
50 nm

B
5 nm

A
50 nm

Conduction Band
Discrete Energy Levels

Valence Band

Valence Bands

Quantum Well

Ec

DE

Egap for Egap for AlxGa1xAs GaAs

Ev

thickness of GaAs layer

Figure 8.2. Schematic energy band diagram of GaAs/GaAlxAs1-x quantum well. An electron (represented by its wavefunction y) can be considered as partially confined in the quantum well of width equal to the GaAs thickness. The barrier height DE is equal to the difference in the energies of the bottom of the conduction band Ec for the two layer materials. Ev is the energy of the top of the valence band and Egap is the band gap energy.

Multiple Quantum Wells

Bulk Semiconductor A Bulk Semiconductor B

Grown atom-by-atom in an MBE machine (Molecular Beam Epitaxy)

Semiconductor Heterostructure

A multi-quantum well layer structure used as a detector is called a QWIP (Quantum Well Infrared Photodetector)
Quantum Well Bandstructure

Transitions
Bound to Bound Bound to Continuum Bound to Quasi- Bound

Bound-to-Continuum
Excited bound state is situated in the contunuum Photoexcited eletrons escape without tunneling
Low bias voltage Low dark current

Bound-to-Bound
Photo-excitation to another bound state within same energy band Excited carriers escape out of well by tunneling

Fabrication
Quantum wells are formed in semiconductors by having a material, like gallium arsenide sandwiched between two layers of a material with a wider bandgap, like aluminium arsenide. These structures can be grown by molecular beam epitaxy or chemical vapor deposition with control of the layer thickness down to monolayers.

Applications

In optical devices such as laser diodes. They are also used to make HEMTs (High Electron Mobility Transistors), which are used in low-noise electronics. Quantum well infrared photo detectors are also based on quantum wells, and are used for infrared imaging.

QUESTIONS

Thank you