ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on an alternative approach: the use of dilute nitride alloys—III—V semiconductor alloys containing small fractions of substitutional nitrogen (N) atoms—to achieve long-wavelength emission in materials having lattice constants compatible with growth on GaAs. It aims to present a comprehensive overview of the theory and modeling of dilute nitride alloys, with a focus on applications in photonic devices. The chapter reviews the theory and modeling of the electronic structure of dilute nitride alloys. Initial experimental measurements on dilute nitride alloys revealed that N incorporation has a significant impact on electron transport. The chapter examines the development of InGaNAs alloys to realize GaAs-based semiconductor lasers emitting at the 1.3-µm optical communications wavelength. While there has been considerable interest in the influence of N incorporation on the electronic structure and optical transitions in InGaNAs/GaAs quantum well, there have been comparatively few quantitative investigations of the primary loss mechanisms in lasers based on the material systems.
