Impact of interface roughness on perpendicular transport and domain formation in superlattices

TL;DR

This paper investigates how interface roughness influences perpendicular electron transport and domain formation in doped superlattices, combining microscopic calculations with experimental validation.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed microscopic model that accounts for interface roughness effects on resonant and nonresonant currents in superlattices, aligning theory with experimental observations.

Findings

Interface roughness affects resonant transitions and background current.

Electric field domains form due to interface roughness, matching experimental data.

Theoretical results show multiple current branches related to domain formation.

Abstract

A microscopic calculation of the perpendicular current in doped multiple quantum wells is presented. Interface roughness is shown to affect the resonant transitions as well as to cause a nonresonant background current. The theoretical characteristics exhibit several branches due to the formation of electric field domains in quantitative agreement with experimental data.