OPTOELECTRONIC DEVICES HAVING A DIRECT-BAND-GAP BASE AND AN INDIRECT-BAND-GAP EMITTER

• US 20110073887A1
• Filed: 09/25/2009
• Published: 03/31/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Alliance For Sustainable Energy LLC
• Original Assignee: Alliance For Sustainable Energy LLC
• Inventors: WANLASS, MARK W., Mascarenhas, Angelo
• Application Number:
  US12/566,769
• Publication Number:
  US 20110073887A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/94
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/0304 including, apart from doping materials or other impurities, only AIIIBV compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/03046 including ternary or quaternary compounds, e.g. GaAlAs, InGaAs, InGaAsP
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/03529 Shape of the potential jump barrier or surface barrier
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/30 containing only elements of Group III and Group V of the Periodic Table
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/544 Solar cells from Group III-V materials

Abstract

Optoelectronic devices, junctions and methods of fabricating a device or junction where the emitter layer is of an indirect-band-gap material and the base layer is of a direct-band-gap material. The device or junction may have, among other structures and layers, a base layer of a first semiconductor material having a first conductivity type and further having a direct band gap and an emitter layer forming a junction with the base layer. In this embodiment, the emitter layer may be of a second semiconductor material having a second conductivity type and further having an indirect band gap. The optoelectronic device may have the semiconductor material of the emitter layer substantially lattice mismatched with the semiconductor material of the base layer in bulk form. Alternatively, the emitter layer may be substantially lattice matched with the base layer.

Claims

1. An optoelectronic device comprising:

a base layer comprising a first semiconductor material having a first conductivity type and further having a direct band gap; and

an emitter layer forming a junction with the base layer, wherein the emitter layer comprises a second semiconductor material having a second conductivity type and further having an indirect band gap.

2. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 wherein the second semiconductor material of the emitter layer is substantially lattice mismatched with the first semiconductor material of the base layer in bulk form.

3. The optoelectronic device of claim 2 further comprising an emitter layer thickness of less than a critical thickness of the second semiconductor material to produce a coherent interface with the base layer.

4. The optoelectronic device of claim 3 wherein the emitter layer thickness is less than or equal to 1 μ

m.

5. The optoelectronic device of claim 3 wherein the first semiconductor material comprises a first Group III-V semiconductor alloy and the second semiconductor material comprises a second Group III-V semiconductor alloy.

6. The optoelectronic device of claim 5 comprising:

the first Group III-V semiconductor alloy having a band gap at least about 70 meV below a direct-indirect crossover where the first semiconductor alloy becomes substantially a direct-band-gap material; and

the second Group III-V semiconductor alloy having a band gap at least about 70 meV above a direct-indirect crossover where the second semiconductor alloy becomes substantially an indirect-band-gap material.

7. The optoelectronic device of claim 5 wherein the base layer and emitter layer comprise a pair of Group III-V semiconductor alloys selected from:

base;

GaInP, emitter;

GaInP;

base;

GaInP, emitter;

AlGaInAsP;

base;

GaAsP, emitter;

GaAsP;

base;

GaAsP, emitter;

AlGaInAsP;

base;

AlInAs, emitter;

AlInAs; and

base;

(Al)GaSb, emitter AlGaSb.

8. The optoelectronic device of claim 2 further comprising:

the first semiconductor material of the base layer being of a p conductivity type; and

the second semiconductor material of the emitter layer being of an n conductivity type.

9. The optoelectronic device of claim 8 further comprising the substantially lattice mismatched emitter layer being under tensile strain.

10. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 wherein the second semiconductor material of the emitter layer is substantially lattice matched with the first semiconductor material of the base layer.

11. The optoelectronic device of claim 10 wherein the first semiconductor material comprises a first Group III-V semiconductor alloy and the second semiconductor material comprises a second Group III-V semiconductor alloy.

12. The optoelectronic device of claim 11 further comprising the first Group III-V semiconductor alloy having a band gap at least about 80 meV lower than the band gap of the second Group III-V semiconductor alloy.

13. The optoelectronic device of claim 11 wherein the base layer and emitter layer comprise a pair of Group III-V semiconductor alloys selected from:

A. base;

GaAs, emitter;

AlGaInP;

B. base;

GaAs, emitter;

AlGaAs;

C. base;

InP, emitter;

AlGaAsSb;

D. base;

InAs, emitter;

AlGaAsSb;

E. base GaInAs, emitter AlInAs;

F. base;

GaInP, emitter;

AlGaInP; and

G. base;

GaAsP, emitter;

AlGaAsP.

14. The optoelectronic device of claim 10 further comprising:

the first semiconductor material of the base layer being of an n conductivity type; and

the second semiconductor material of the emitter layer being of a p conductivity type.

15. The optoelectronic device of claim 10 further comprising the second semiconductor material of the substantially lattice matched emitter layer being disordered to provide a selected indirect-band-gap.

16. A method of forming an optoelectronic device comprising:

providing a base layer comprising a first semiconductor material having a first conductivity type and further having a direct band gap; and

associating an emitter layer with the semiconductor base layer, the emitter comprising a second semiconductor material having a second conductivity type and further having an indirect band gap.

17. The method of forming an optoelectronic device of claim 16 wherein the second semiconductor material is substantially lattice mismatched with the first semiconductor material in bulk form.

18. The method of forming an optoelectronic device of claim 17 further comprising growing the emitter layer to a thickness less than a critical thickness of the second semiconductor material to produce a coherent interface with the base layer.

19. The method of forming an optoelectronic device of claim 18 further comprising growing the emitter layer under tensile strain.

20. The method of forming a optoelectronic device of claim 17 further comprising providing a first semiconductor material for the base layer having a p type conductivity.

21. The method of forming an optoelectronic device of claim 17 wherein:

the first semiconductor material is a Group III-V semiconductor alloy having a band gap at least about 70 meV below a direct-indirect crossover where the first semiconductor alloy becomes a direct-band-gap material; and

the second semiconductor material is a Group III-V semiconductor alloy having a band gap at least about 70 meV above a direct-indirect crossover where the second semiconductor alloy becomes an indirect-band-gap material.

22. The method of forming an optoelectronic device of claim 16 wherein the emitter layer is grown substantially lattice matched with the base layer

23. The method of forming a optoelectronic device of claim 22 wherein the first semiconductor material is a Group III-V semiconductor alloy having a band gap at least about 80 meV below a band gap of the second semiconductor material.

24. The method of forming an optoelectronic device of claim 22 further comprising disordering the atoms of the second semiconductor material.

25. A junction comprising:

a base layer comprising a first semiconductor material having a first conductivity type and further having a direct band gap; and

an emitter layer in contact with the base layer, the emitter layer comprising a second semiconductor material having a second conductivity type and further having an indirect band gap.