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IEEE National Distinguished Lecture

Program, India
Lecture

Advances in Semiconductor
Photonic Devices – Part II
N. R. Das
Institute of Radio Physics and Electronics
University of Calcutta, India
Topics
 In Part-I (discussed previously)
a s
D
Introduction: Photonic Device, Nanostructure
.
R
Photon emission process
.
NSource (LED, LASER),
Optical
L Modulator
H E
A P
R
 In Part-II (present)
IN
Optical amplification
.
C .
Photon absorption process U
Optical Detector (photodetector)
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 2
Optical Amplifier
Erbium-doped Fiber Amplifier (EDFA)
Transmission fiber
a s Erbium-doped Fiber

Input signal
. D WDM Output
(optical)
. R coupler amplified signal

N
Pump laser
L
H E
Level 3

A P tsp~1ms

Level 2
R Fast decay

IN
1460nm tsp~10ms
1540nm
1480nm
.U .Spontaneous emission
(1500-1600nm)

Level 1
C Stimulated emission
(1500-1600nm)

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 3


Optical Amplifier

s
Semiconductor Optical Amplifier
a
. D
Input signal (Light)
. R
N
Population inversion
Stimulation by input EL
I

Amplified light P
H p+

output R
A P+ (confining layer)

IN
Input Output

. N+ (confining layer) Active

U
layer

C . n+

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 4


Absorbing Photons
 Light (radiation) incident on semiconductor
a s
D
Continuous bands Discrete States

Inter-band
R .Conduction Band
(VB  CB)

N . CB
Eg
E L Eg '
hν≥Eg
P H hν≥Eg' VB

R A
Valence Band
∆n=±0

IN .
.U
CB
Intra-band (Inter subband)
(subband  subband)

∆n=±1
C VB
Subbands

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 5


Photodetector
 Absorption of light
a s
 Electrical current in the external circuit
 Classifications by . D
. R
 No. of junctions, wavelength range, transition states,
internalNgain
E L
H
Photodetector (PD)
P
R A
IN
No internal gain

.
Internal gain

pn,
p-i-n,
Schottky, C . U Photoconductor,
APD,
Phototransistor,
MSM, … …

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 6


Junction Photodiode
 pn photodiode
a s
D
 Electrons and holes separated by - +
built-in field
R . W

.
-- ++
– Large region undepleted -- ++

N
-- ++

L
--
– Non-uniform field, Bias-dependent P --
++
++ N
depletion
H E Diffusion Drift Diffusion

• Solution A P p+ n E

R
IN
 p n, pn structures
+ + - +
0 x
 Non-uniform field
.U .
 p-i-n structure
(next)
C
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 7
pin Photodiode
W

a s
- p
. D i n +

. R
N L
E
H E
A P
R
x

IN
 Uniform field in i-region, Depletion at Low bias
.
.U
 W~ i-layer thickness (~ Bias-independent)
 Large bandwidth, low noise
 No gain
C
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 8
Avalanche Photodiode (APD)
 p-n junction
a s
D
Ionizing electron

- P
R . N +

N .
Ecr
Ionization region

E L
E P H
R A Gain

Avalanche
0
INx

.
.U
Multiplication Bias

C
 Large Gain
Hole  Large noise
Electron  Low BW at high gain
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 9
Schottky, M-S-M PDs
 Schottky
 Easy to fabricate, High speed a s
. D
 No gain, Undesirable spectral response

. R
Semiconductor
N
Metal
L
Metal (+)

n- n
H E
-
A
+
P Semiconductor
VR
R
IN
Metal (-)
 M-S-M (Metal-Semiconductor-Metal)
 Ultra-low capacitance, Large bandwidth
.U .
 Good Integrability with HEMT, HBT
 Manufacturing limitation
C
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 10
Phototransistor

a s
. D
n p
. R n

N L
E B C
H E
• Light incident on base
• Reverse biased B-C junction

A P separates carriers
R • Gain: Transistor action
IN • Uniform gain with bias
.
.U
• Large dark current,

C
moderate BW

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 11


Photodetector Performance
 Quantum efficiency (QE)
-
a s
+

. D
V
W

R
-- ++ I0 R
.
-- ++
p -- ++ n

N
-- ++

L
-- ++

E
h
e

P H
diffusion drift diffusion

R A
η = σ (1 − R ){1 − exp(−αW )}
IN .
.U
 σ – conversion efficiency (Eg~hν)

C
 R– Reflection coeff. (AR coating)
 α – Abs. Coeff. (Material/band-gap)

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 12


Photodetector Performance
 Bandwidth (BW)
a s
. D
Transit-time delay, RC delay - +

. R V
W

N L
--
--
++
++ I0 R

E
p -- ++ n
-- ++

H
-- ++

P
Transit-time limited h
Bandwidth

A
e
Overall

R diffusion drift diffusion

IN
RC limited

d
. U . BW
(APD)

C Gain
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 13
PD Performance
 Noise
Thermal/JohnsonD a s
Noise
R .
.
Material, structure
N / Generation-recombination
Shot Noise
E L (GR)
Noise
P H
Flicker (1/f) Noise
R A
IN
Noise
. U . 1/f GR Johnson

Excess Noise factor (APD)C frequency

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 14


Advanced Structures
 Conventional structure:
a s
. D
BW (tr.-time) ↓ as d ↑
Trade-off

R
QE ↑ as d ↑

.
N
Dielectric
Solution !
L
Stack (R1)

 RCE PD
H E p InP
p Contact

Multiple reflections
A P InGaAs d

R
n InP
QE improved
N
InP/

I
Thin layer (d)
.
InGaAsP
DBR (R2)

.U
n Contact
Large BW
Free space optical interconnect
C
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 15
Advanced Structures
EC PDs
a s
D
Lengths (QE, BW) decoupled
High QE = f(.
. R L)

N
Large BW= f(d)
L -
Good coupling
H E P

A P
(Integrated circuit) Absorption layer d

R
N

IN
L

. U . +

Travelling wave PD
C
 Waveguide PD, Waveguide-fed PD,

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 16


Heterostructure PIN PD

a s
D
P+ InP i - InGaAs N+ InP

R .
N .
hν~Eg

E L
Absorption only in
EG Eg EG
P H i-layer
d
R A Reduced diffusion

IN
absorbing
.
transparent
C .U
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 17
Heterostructure APD
 SAGCM APD
a s
. DSeparate Absorption, Grading,
R
-

N .
InP contact Charge and Multiplication
i-InAlAs Multiplication
E L
n+-InAlAs Charge
P H
i-InGaAlAs Grading

R A
i-InGaAs Absorption
IN • Reduced tunneling

.
• Reduced hetero-interface trapping
InP

+
.U
• To use undoped multiple layer
C
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 18
Nanophotonic Detector
 Quantum Well PD
 RCE Multiple Quantum Well (MQW)
a s
 Increased absorption
. D
Top (back) Mirror

. R
N Metal Contact
L
• 1.3µm wavelength

E
P-Si (near-infrared)

P H
i-Si1-xGex (dw)
• SiGe Technology

A i-Si (dB) • Interband transition

MQW
R
IN
i-Si1-xGex (dw)
i-Si (dB)

(a)
N-Si

.U
Bottom (front) mirror.
C
N-Si Substrate

Incident Light
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 19
Infrared Detectors
 Applications:

a s
 Medium /Long wavelength IR (MWIR/LWIR)

. D
• Thermal imaging, Night vision, Millitary, Security,

R
Non-invasive Medical diagnosis, Agriculture, Food Industry,
.
N
Environmental Pollution Monitoring, …

• Materials E L
 InSb, InAs (3-5µm) P H
R A
IN
 HgCdTe (MCT) (8-14µm)
 High absorption coefficient and low thermal emission(>75K),
Light weight
.U .
C
 Difficult (low gap) to grow, process, fabricate into devices
 Semiconductor Nanostructures (QWIP, …)
Inter-subband transition
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 20
Quantum Well Infrared
Photodetector (QWIP)
a s AlGaAs GaAs AlGaAs

D Barrier Well Barrier


Contact
Emitter
R .
.
n=3
Conduction
GaAs
N n=2

L
n=1
band offset

AlGaAs
H E GaAs
AlGaAs
band-gap

Contact
A P n=1
Band-gap

R
Valence
n=2

IN
band offset
Collector

 Transition (Interband)
.U .
 Bound to  Bound, Continuum,
Quasi-Continuum
C (not to
scale)

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 21


QWIP
 Escape: Injection

as
Current
 Tunneling Capture
 Thermionic
. D Escape Total Current

emission
. R
N
(Emitter)

 Current
E L
 Thermal excitaion
P H (Collector)
(dark current)
R A
IN
 Photoexcitaion
(photo current)
 Balance: (capture/escape)
.U .
GaAs ~ 4.1 nm, Al0.26Ga0.74As ~ 48 nm
C
[APL, 71 , 1997, p.2011]
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 22
QWIP in Use
IR Camera
a s
. D
.
LWIR Handheld QWIP R
N
Camera:GaAs/AlGaAs MQW
L
H E
A P
 Thermal Imaging
R
IN .
QWIP-LED with CCD
[IEEE PTL 2002, 182] C .U
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 23
QWIP features
High uniformity
a s
Excellent reproducibility
. D
R
Low power consumption
.
N
High resolution
L
Large format
H E
Fast response time
A P
R
Multi-color detection
IN
No response for normal incidence
.
Large dark current
Low operating temperature C .U
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 24
Problems and Solutions

s
Solving Polarization Problem
a
. D
Manufacturing steps
45º wedgeR
.
N mirror on the backL MQW

Grating on the surface E


Roughed

H
450

A P
Structure NR
I .
Quantum Wire Infra-red Photodetector (QRIP)
. U
C Photodetector (QDIP)
 Quantum Dot Infra-red
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 25
QRIP

a s
 Schematic Structure
. D
Emitter
. R
N L
H E
Quantum Wire
A P
(QR)
R
IN .
Collector
C .U
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 26
QDIP Structure

 Structure a s
. D
R
 N+ - N - N+ diode
structure

N .
 Undoped InAs QDs
(small band-gap material)
E L
 Undoped N- GaAs layer
P H
(wide-gap barrier)
 InGaAs Capping layer
R A
IN
(strain-relieving)

.
[APL 79, 2001, p.3341]
C .U
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 27
QDIP Performance

10-4

D as

Photocurrent (a.u.)
100

.
Dark Current (A)

R
10-6

.
10-1
10-8
N L
E
10-2

H
10-10

10-12

A P 10-3

R
IN
Detectivity: Noise current
.
[APL 83, 2003, p752]

Noise current : Dark current


C
Gain: Escape/capture probability .U
Responsivity: Quantum efficiency, gain
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 28
QWIP, QRIP and QDIP

a s
Performance
. D
QWIP QRIP QDIP
Sensitivity to
. RVery low Good Good (/ best
N
normal Incidence
L
among the three)

H E
Photoelectric gain Moderate Large Large
Low P High
Operating
Temperature R A High

Dark current INLarge Small Small


Low .
Commercial Use
(Current Status)
Best
C . U Low

Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 29


Simulations
 Mode I:
a
Obtain Physics-based Modelss
. D
R
Solve analytically / numerically
.
N
Use program codes (MATLAB, C, ...) to
L
simulate
H E
P
Good control, but time consuming
A
R
Mode II: IN .
Use Commercial Softwares
C
Quick solution, but little control
.U
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 30
Simulators
RSOFT Design Group
OptSIM a s
. D
CAD for Optical Communication
. R
BeamPROP
NWaveguide & Fiber Application
L

H E
LaserMOD
A
Active Devic P
Application

N R
I
FemSIM,
Cavity mode solver
.
...
C . U
"FIBER OPTIC SERVICES" , Mumbai
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 31
Simulators
SILVACO Device Simulator
a s
ATLAS
. D
. R
2D Simulation Modules
:Luminous (OE Device)
N
:LED, Laser L
H
: Quantum (quantum structures), …E
A
3D Simulation Modules P
: Luminous3D R
IN
: Quantum3D, ...
.
“Integrated Micro Systems -India” C .U
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 32
Summary & Conclusion

a s
 Interband and Intersubband Absorption
 Photodetector . D
. R
N
 Types, Principles, Performance
L
 Heterostructure improves performance
H E
A P
 Nanophotonic R detectors
IN
 Tailorable absorption
.
. U
 Infra-red detectors (intersubband
C transition)
 Simulation approach
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 33
Some References
 P. Bhattacharya, “Semiconductor Optoelectronic
a s
Devices”, PHI (India), New Delhi, 2002.
 B. R. Nag, “Physics ofD
R . Quantum Well Devices”, Kluwer

N
 D. Bimberg,
.
Academic Publishers, London, 2000.
et al, , “Quantum DotLHeterostructures”,

H
John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, E England, 1999.

A P
 J. M. Senior, “Optical Fiber Communication, PHI
(India), 1994. R
IN .
C . U
Aug 7-9, 2009 IEEE NDLP Lecture (NERIST) / NRD(RPE/CU) 34

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