Layer-selective spin amplification in size-modulated quantum nanocolumn

The optical spin properties of size-modulated quantum nanocolumns (QNCs), which are composed of 9 layers of vertically coupled InGaAs quantum dots (QDs), have been studied by circularly polarized time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy of QD excited states with barrier excitation. High spin polarization at the emissive state is one of the essential elements in the development of spin-functional optical devices. Coupling of QD excited states can enhance the spin polarization if only minority spins are effectively removed from the emissive excited states. In this study, size-modulated QNCs with the increasing size toward the upper layer were grown, and we revealed that the combination of QD size modulation and electron wavefunction coupling in the stacking direction can greatly enhance spin polarization during light emission from the smaller-sized QD layers. We observed a temporal spin amplification of more than 80% at coupled excited states. This enhancement is derived from the size-modulation-induced selective transfer of minority spins to the larger-sized QD layers, which have abundant excited states where electron spins are transferred. In addition, we found that QNCs can retain high spin polarization even at high excitation spin density. Our findings of spin amplification during light emission will provide QNC systems suitable for spin-functional optical devices. Published under license by AIP Publishing.