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Presenting the latest advances in artificial structures, this volume discusses in-depth the structure and electron transport mechanisms of quantum wells, superlattices, quantum wires, and quantum dots. It will serve as an invaluable reference and review for researchers and graduate students in solid-state physics, materials science, and electrical and electronic engineering.

Low-dimensional semiconductor quantum structures are a major, high-technological development that has a considerable industrial potential. The field is developing extremely rapidly and the present book represents a timely guide to the latest developments in device technology, fundamental properties, and some remarkable applications. The content is largely tutorial, and the book could be used as a textbook. The book deals with the physics, fabrication, characteristics and performance of devices based on low-dimensional semiconductor structures. It opens with fabrication procedures. The fundamentals of quantum structures and electro-optical devices are dealt with extensively. Nonlinear optical devices are discussed from the point of view of physics and applications of exciton saturation in MQW structures. Waveguide-based devices are also described in terms of linear and nonlinear coupling. The basics of pseudomorphic HEMT technology, device physics and materials layer design are presented. Each aspect is reviewed from the elementary basics up to the latest developments. Audience: Undergraduates in electrical engineering, graduates in physics and engineering schools. Useful for active scientists and engineers wishing to update their knowledge and understanding of recent developments.

Quantum well devices have been the objects of intensive research during the last two decades. Some of the devices have matured into commercially useful products and form part of modern electronic circuits. Some others require further dev- opment, but have the promise of being useful commercially in the near future. Study of the devices is, therefore, gradually becoming compulsory for electronics specialists. The functioning of the devices, however, involve aspects of physics which are not dealt with in the available text books on the physics of semicond- tor devices. There is, therefore, a need for a book to cover all these aspects at an introductory level. The present book has been written with the aim of meeting this need. In fact, the book grew out of introductory lectures given by the author to graduate students and researchers interested in this rapidly developing area of electron devices. The book covers the subjects of heterostructure growth techniques, band-offset theory and experiments, electron states, electron-photon interaction and related phenomena, electron transport and the operation of electronic, opto-electronic and photonic quantum well devices. The theory as well as the practical aspects of the devices are discussed at length. The aim of the book is to provide a comprehensive treatment of the physics underlying the various devices. A reader after going through the book should find himself equipped to deal with all kinds of quantum well devices.