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AssigneesInternational Business Machines Corporation, Purdue Research Foundation
InventorsJeremy Burroughes, Rodney T. Hodgson, David T. McInturff, Michael R. Melloch, Nobuo Otsuka, Paul M. Solomon, Alan C. Warren, Jerry M Woodall
Estimating the term…
A doped or undoped photoresponsive material having metallic precipitates, and a PiN photodiode utilizing the material for detecting light having a wavelength of 1.3 micrometers. The PiN photodiode includes a substrate having a first compound semiconductor layer disposed thereon. The PiN photodiode further includes an optically responsive compound semiconductor layer disposed above the first compound semiconductor layer. The optically responsive layer includes a plurality of buried Schottky barriers, each of which is associated with an inclusion within a crystal lattice of a Group III-V material. The PiN device also includes a further compound semiconductor layer disposed above the optically responsive layer. For a transversely illuminated embodiment, waveguiding layers may also be disposed above and below the PiN structure. In one example the optically responsive layer is comprised of GaAs:As. The GaAs:As exhibits a very low room temperature dark current, even under forward bias conditions, and a responsivity to 1.3 micrometer radiation modulated at frequencies greater than 1 GHz.
A body comprised of a compound semiconductor material having metallic particulate inclusions that are dispersed within a crystal lattice of said compound semiconductor material, substantially all of said metallic particulate inclusions being completely surrounded by said compound semiconductor material and physically separated from one another and from external surfaces of said body of compound semiconductor material, said metallic particulate inclusions having a Schottky barrier height of a magnitude sufficient for generating detectable charge carriers in response to electromagnetic radiation having a photon energy that is less than a bandgap energy of said compound semiconductor material.
A body comprised of a compound semiconductor material having metallic particulate inclusions dispersed within a crystal lattice of said compound semiconductor material, substantially all of said metallic particulate inclusions being completely surrounded by said compound semiconductor material and physically separated from one another and from external surfaces of said body of compound semiconductor material, said metallic particulate inclusions having a Schottky barrier height of a magnitude sufficient for generating detectable charge carriers in response to electromagnetic radiation having a wavelength equal to or less than approximately 1.6 micrometers.
An optically active device comprising a radiation absorbing region that is comprised of a region of compound semiconductor material having a plurality of metallic particulate inclusions contained therein, substantially all of said metallic particulate inclusions being completely surrounded by said compound semiconductor material and physically separated from one another and from external surfaces of said region of compound semiconductor material, said metallic particulate inclusions rendering said compound semiconductor material substantially electrically nonconducting in the absence of illumination.
A PiN photodiode comprising:
A body of material comprised of Group III-V elements having metallic particulate inclusions consisting essentially of either a Group III element or a Group V element, said metallic particulate inclusions each having a diameter within a range of approximately 20 Angstroms to approximately 200 Angstroms and a concentration within said material within a range of approximately 10.sup.16 particulate inclusion cm.sup.-3 to approximately 10.sup.18 particulate inclusions cm.sup.-3, substantially all of said metallic particulate inclusions being totally surrounded by said material and dispersed within a crystal lattice of said material in such a manner that the crystal lattice is not significantly defected, substantially all of said metallic particulate inclusions being physically separated from one another and from external surfaces of said body of material.
A compound semiconductor material containing particulates comprised of metallic precipitates each having a diameter within a range of approximately 20 Angstroms to approximately 200 Angstroms and a concentration within said material within a range of approximately 10.sup.16 particulates cm.sup.-3 to approximately 10.sup.18 particulates cm.sup.-3, substantially all of said particulates being completely surrounded by the compound semiconductor material, substantially all of said particulates being physically separated from one another and from external surfaces of said body of material, the compound semiconductor material being doped with an acceptor dopant or with a donor dopant at a concentration within a range of approximately 10.sup.16 dopant atoms cm.sup.-3 to approximately 10.sup.18 dopant atoms cm.sup.-3 wherein the compound semiconductor material exhibits an electrical conductivity, in the absence of illumination, that is substantially less than an electrical conductivity of an equivalently doped compound semiconductor material that does not contain a significant number of said particulates.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.