CAPTURE AND EMISSION OF ELECTRONS IN QUANTUM-WELLS UNDER APPLIED ELECTRIC-FIELD

Important characteristics of Quantum Well Infrared Photodetectors are determined almost entirely by the photoionization rate of electrons out of the Quantum Well (QW) and the recapture into the QWs. To elucidate these processes microscopically we have made structures in which the QWs are isolated from one contact by a completely blocking barrier, so that the steady state current vanishes. The transient current induced by photoionization out of the QWs gives a direct measurement of the photoionization cross section and the escape probability of a photoexcited electron. We have found that the variation of the latter with the electric field may be described by a simple barrier lowering model combined with statistical fluctuation of the QW width. The capture process has been studied by impedance spectroscopy in samples containing only one well. The capture velocity thus measured is found to decrease with increasing applied electric field but within experimental uncertainties it does not depend on the width of the well for well widths between 3 and 7.5 nm. Theoretical results on optical phonon mediated transitions in the applied field from barrier to well states show a generally good agreement with experiment at low fields but less dependence on the field.