Characterization Of Photo Current Of Mid-Wavelength Quantum-Well Infrared Photodetector (Mw-Qwip)

We investigated the mechanism of the photocurrent transmission in mid-wavelength quantum-well infrared photodetectors that were made using InGaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells so that their peak absorption would be at a wavelength near 5 mum. Analyzing the bias-voltage dependence of the photocurrent for the samples with different well layer thicknesses, we found that the photocurrent transmission could be accounted for by taking into account the tunneling process via the triangular barrier, the effect of the intrinsic electric field due to the unintentional impurities, and the effect of the drift velocity.