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The Rashba effect in Ge/Si$_{0.15}$Ge$_{0.85}$ multiple quantum wells embedded in a p-i-n diode is studied through polarization and time-resolved photoluminescence. In addition to a sizeable redshift arising from the quantum-confined Stark effect, a threefold enhancement of the circular polarization degree of the direct transition is obtained by increasing the pump power over a 2kW/cm$^2$ range. This marked variation reflects an efficient modulation of the spin population and is further supported by dedicated investigations of the indirect gap transition. This study demonstrates a viable strategy to engineer the spin-orbit Hamiltonian through contactless optical excitation and opens the way towards the electro-optical manipulation of spins in quantum devices based on group-IV heterostructures.

Hybrid superconductor−semiconductor structures attract increasing attention owing to a variety of potential applications in quantum computing devices. They can serve the realization of topological superconducting systems as well as gate-tunable superconducting quantum bits. Here, we combine a SiGe/Ge/SiGe quantum-well heterostructure hosting high-mobility two-dimensional holes and aluminum superconducting leads to realize prototypical hybrid devices, such as Josephson field-effect transistors (JoFETs) and superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs). We observe gate-controlled supercurrent transport with Ge channels as long as one micrometer and estimate the induced superconducting gap from tunnel spectroscopy measurements. Transmission electron microscopy reveals the diffusion of Ge.

Hybrid superconductor-semiconductor structures attract increasing attention owing to a variety of potential applications in quantum computing devices. They can serve to the realization of topological superconducting systems, as well as gate-tunable superconducting quantum bits. Here we combine a SiGe/Ge/SiGe quantum-well heterostructure hosting high-mobility two-dimensional holes and aluminum superconducting leads to realize prototypical hybrid devices, such as Josephson field-effect transistors (JoFETs) and superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs). We observe gate-controlled supercurrent transport with Ge channels as long as one micrometer and estimate the induced superconducting gap from tunnel spectroscopy measurements in superconducting point-contact devices. Transmission electron microscopy reveals the diffusion of Ge into the aluminum contacts, whereas no aluminum is detected in the Ge channel.

We analyze the linewidth of intersubband absorption features observed in n-type s-Ge/Ge0.82Si0.18 multiquantum wells grown on Si(001) substrates. Supported by a thorough theoretical modeling, we discuss the role on the line broadening of electron scattering due to interface roughness, spatial distribution and density of ionized donors, phonons, alloy disorder, and extended defects. To this aim, the absorption spectra of a set of samples featuring different well widths and doping profiles are measured obtaining a very good agreement with the theoretical results. We demonstrate values of the half width at half maximum of the E0->E1 absorption peak as small as 2 meV. Our analysis suggests that the coherence time of electron wave functions in n-doped Ge/SiGe quantum wells is not yet limited by intrinsic scattering mechanisms up to room temperature, opening new perspectives for the quantum design of silicon-based light emitting devices.

In this work we have experimentally and numerically studied the non-radiative intersubband (ISB) relaxation in n-type Ge/SiGe quantum well (QW) systems. Relaxation times have been probed by means of pump-probe experiments. An energy balance model has been employed to interpret the experimental differential transmission spectra and to assess the relevance in the non-radiative relaxation dynamics of both electron and lattice temperature as well as of the carrier density. The comparison between experimental data and theoretical simulation allowed us to calibrate the interaction parameters which describe the electron-optical phonon scattering in 2D Ge systems. Characteristic relaxation times has been calculated and compared with those of GaAs QWs as a function of the 2D electron density, of the subband energy separation, and of the lattice and electronic temperature. We found that ISB relaxation times for the Ge/SiGe systems are generally shorter than what previously calculated when the electron distribution was neglected. Nonetheless, our main result is thatthe relaxation time in Ge/SiGe QW systems is longer than 10 ps, also for transition energies above the Ge optical phonon energy, up to 300 K. Furthermore, we obtained that the relaxation times are at least one order of magnitude longer than in GaAs-based systems.

We studied the optical properties of a strain-induced direct-band-gap Ge quantum well embedded in InGaAs. We showed that the band offsets depend on the electronegativity of the layer in contact with Ge, leading to different types of optical transitions in the heterostructure. When group-V atoms compose the interfaces, only electrons are confined in Ge, whereas both carriers are confined when the interface consists of group-III atoms. The different carrier confinement results in different emission dynamics behavior. This study provides a solution to obtain efficient light emission from Ge. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.177404

In this work, ultrathin amorphous Ge films (2 to 30 nm in thickness) embedded in SiO2 layers were grown by magnetron sputtering and employed as proficient light sensitizer in photodetector devices. A noteworthy modification of the visible photon absorption is evidenced due to quantum confinement effects which cause both a blueshift (from 0.8 to 1.8 eV) in the bandgap and an enhancement (up to three times) in the optical oscillator strength of confined carriers. The reported quantum confinement effects have been exploited to enhance light detection by Ge quantum wells, as demonstrated by photodetectors with an internal quantum efficiency of 70%. © 2013 Cosentino et al.