Investigation of quantum-confinement effect and Stokes shift in strained Ga1−xInxN/GaN double quantum wells by spectroscopic ellipsometry and photoluminescence

The evolution of the optical absorption and emission properties of strained Ga1−xInxN/GaN double quantum wells grown on (0001)-oriented sapphire substrates with varying well width has been investigated by spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) and photoluminescence (PL). The SE result shows that the band-gap absorption energy of the wells shifts to higher energies as the well width decreases, indicating a quantum-confinement effect. The decreasing trend agrees with the result of one-dimensional square-well potential calculations. The PL result shows a Stokes shift of the emission edge from the corresponding absorption edge, attributable to the combined effects of the strain-induced piezoelectric potential and the In-fluctuation potential in the well. The blueshift of the emission edge with increasing PL excitation density further supports the existence of a strong piezoelectric field in the well.