Barrier in the valence band in the nBn detector with an active layer from the type-II superlattice

Article history: Received 11 Sep. 2020 Received in revised form 8 Oct. 2020 Accepted 18 Oct 2020 Numerical analysis of the dark current (Id) in the type-II superlattice (T2SL) barrier (nBn) detector operated at high temperatures was presented. Theoretical calculations were compared with the experimental results for the nBn detector with the absorber and contact layers in an InAs/InAsSb superlattice separated AlAsSb barrier. Detector structure was grown using MBE technique on a GaAs substrate. The k·p model was used to determine the first electron band and the first heavy and light hole bands in T2SL, as well as to calculate the absorption coefficient. The paper presents the effect of the additional hole barrier on electrical and optical parameters of the nBn structure. According to the principle of the nBn detector operation, the electrons barrier is to prevent the current flow from the contact layer to the absorber, while the holes barrier should be low enough to ensure the flow of optically generated carriers. The barrier height in the valence band (VB) was adjusted by changing the electron affinity of a ternary AlAsSb material. Results of numerical calculations similar to the experimental data were obtained, assuming the presence of a high barrier in VB which, at the same time, lowered the detector current responsivity.