Effects of tensile and compressive strain on the luminescence properties of AlInGaN/InGaN quantum well structures

We report on the luminescence properties of $AlInGaN/In0.08Ga0.92N$ quantum wells (QWs) subjected to a variable amount of lattice mismatch induced strain, including wells with zero strain, compressive strain, and tensile strain. The primary peak emission energy of a 3 nm $In0.08Ga0.92N$ QW was redshifted by 236 meV as the stress in the well was changed from −0.86% (compressive) to 0.25% (tensile). It was also found that the photoluminescence intensity of quantum wells decreased with increasing strain. A lattice matched 9 nm QW exhibited a luminescence intensity that is three times greater than its highly strained counterpart. The potential applications of this strain engineering will be discussed.