Influence of lateral patterning geometry on lateral carrier confinement in strain-modulated InGaAs-nanostructures

Lateral patterning of a tensily strained InGaP stressor layer is used to induce a lateral carrier confinement in an InGaAs-single quantum well (SQW) by lateral strain modulation. It is shown that the value of the induced strain can be influenced by the geometry of the patterned structure. Finite element calculations (FEM) of the strain distribution predict a maximum value of strain for a nearly triangular structure, whereas the strain variation decreases with the valley width of a trapezoidal structure. Samples with different stressor geometry were prepared by holographic photolithography and subsequent wet chemical etching. The optical properties were studied by 10 K photoluminescence (PL). The largest wavelength shift was observed for the sample with the triangular structure confirming the predictions of FEM calculations.