GaInAs/GaAs quantum well intermixing based on SiO2–Cu composite film

Quantum well intermixing (QWI) is widely used in bandgap tuning of optoelectronic materials. In this paper, GaInAs/GaAs QWI is studied based on SiO2–Cu composite layers. The effects of annealing parameter and Cu layer thickness on the photoluminescence (PL) characteristics are analyzed. The results show that the PL blue shift gradually increases with the rise of annealing temperature, and the PL intensity exhibits a peak rise at a temperature that is related to the Cu layer thickness. It is also found that the PL blue shift increases when the thickness of the Cu layer becomes large in the composite film. In addition, multi-cycle annealing can be used to improve the PL properties of the samples, while the PL can have a large blue shift. Compared with SiO2 cap layer, SiO2–Cu composite film exhibits a more significant effect on QWI for GaInAs/GaAs quantum well (QW) materials.