Significant Enhancement of Carrier Mobility in Finite vs. Infinite Square Quantum Wells: A Comparative Study of GaAs/In$_x$Ga$_{1-x}$As/GaAs Heterostructures

TL;DR

This study compares carrier mobility in finite and infinite GaAs/InGaAs/GaAs quantum wells, revealing how geometry influences scattering mechanisms and mobility under different temperature and size conditions to optimize device performance.

Contribution

It provides a systematic analysis of how finite versus infinite quantum well geometries affect carrier mobility, highlighting the impact of various scattering mechanisms across temperature and size regimes.

Findings

Finite QWs have higher mobility at low temperatures and small widths.

Infinite QWs outperform at room temperature due to LO phonon scattering.

Mobility ratios depend on scattering type and operational conditions.

Abstract

The geometry of quantum wells (QWs) critically influences carrier mobility, yet systematic comparisons between finite and infinite square QWs remain scarce. We present a comprehensive study of GaAs/In$_x$Ga$_{1-x}$As/GaAs heterostructures using a variational-subband-wave-function model, analyzing key scattering mechanisms: remote impurities (RI), alloy disorder (AD), surface roughness (SR), acoustic (ac) and piezoelectric (PE) phonons, and longitudinal optical (LO) phonons. The mobility ratio $R=\mu_{fin}/\mu_{inf}$ reveals distinct trends: $R_{RI}$ and $R_{LO}<$ 1 (long-range Coulomb/inelastic scattering), while $R_{AD}$, $R_{ac}$, $R_{PE}$, $R_{SR}>$ 1 (static potentials). Finite QWs achieve higher mobility at low temperatures (77 K), narrow widths ($<$ 100 \AA ), and low densities, enhanced by high indium content. Conversely, infinite QWs outperform at 300 K due to dominant LO scattering. These findings provide actionable guidelines for optimizing QW-based devices such as HEMTs and lasers across operational regimes.