The Ga(AsBi) material system opens opportunities in the field of high efficiency infrared laser diodes. We report on the growth, structural investigations, and lasing properties of dilute bismide Ga(AsBi)/(AlGa)As single quantum well lasers with 2.2% Bi grown by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy on GaAs (001) substrates. Electrically injected laser operation at room temperature is achieved with a threshold current density of 1.56 kA/cm2 at an emission wavelength of ∼947 nm. These results from broad area devices show great promise for developing efficient IR laser diodes based on this emerging materials system.

The lattice-matched growth of the direct band gap material Ga(NAsP) is a seminal concept for the monolithic integration of III/V laser on a silicon substrate. Here, we report on the growth, characterization, and lasing properties of Ga(NAsP)/(BGa)(AsP) multi quantum well heterostructures embedded in (BGa)P cladding layers which were deposited on an exactly oriented (001) Si substrate. Structural investigations confirm a high crystal quality without any indication for misfit or threading dislocation formation. Laser operation between 800 nm and 900 nm of these broad area device structures was achieved under optical pumping as well as electrical injection for temperatures up to 150 K. This “proof of principle” points to the enormous potential of Ga(NAsP) as an optical complement to Si microelectronics.

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We report optically enhanced infrared-harvesting colloidal quantum dot solar cells based on integrated Fabry–Perot cavities. By integrating the active layer of the photovoltaic device between two reflective interfaces, we tune its sensitivity in the spectral region at 1100–1350 nm. The top and bottom electrodes also serve as mirrors, converting the device into an optical resonator. The front conductive mirror consists of a dielectric stack of SiN x and SiO2 with a terminal layer of ITO and ZnO in which current can flow, while the back mirror consists of a highly reflective gold layer. Adjusting the reflectivity and central wavelength of the front mirror as well as the thickness of the active layer allowed increases in absorption by a total of 56% in the infrared, leading to a record external quantum efficiency of 60% at 1300 nm. This work opens new avenues toward low-cost, high-efficiency rear-junction photovoltaic harvesters that add to the overall performance of silicon solar cells.

Replacing small amounts of As with Bi in InGaBiAs/InP induces large decreases and increases in the bandgap, E, and spin-orbit splitting, Δ, respectively. The possibility of achieving Δ > E and a reduced temperature (T) dependence for E are significant for suppressing recombination losses and improving performance in mid-infrared photonic devices. We measure E (x, T) and Δ (x, T) in InGa BiAs/InP samples for 0 x 0.039 by various complementary optical spectroscopic techniques. While we find no clear evidence of a decreased dE/dT (≈0.34 ± 0.06 meV/K in all samples) we find Δ > E for x > 3.3-4.3. The predictions of a valence band anti-crossing model agree well with the measurements. © 2012 American Institute of Physics