Electron-Phonon Interaction in Embedded Semiconductor Nanostructures

TL;DR

This paper investigates how embedding semiconductor nanostructures alters acoustic phonons and electron-phonon interactions, revealing suppressed coupling strength compared to bulk phonons through theoretical and computational methods.

Contribution

It introduces a method combining continuum elasticity and ab initio calculations to analyze phonon modifications and electron-phonon coupling in embedded nanostructures.

Findings

Phonon properties are modified by embedding in host materials.

Electron-phonon coupling strength is reduced compared to bulk assumptions.

Effective elastic constants are computed using density functional theory.

Abstract

The modification of acoustic phonons in semiconductor nanostructures embedded in a host crystal is investigated including corrections due to strain within continuum elasticity theory. Effective elastic constants are calculated employing {\em ab initio} density functional theory. For a spherical InAs quantum dot embedded in GaAs barrier material, the electron-phonon coupling is calculated. Its strength is shown to be suppressed compared to the assumption of bulk phonons.