Room-temperature electroluminescence from germanium in an Al(0.3)Ga(0.7)As/Ge heterojunction light-emitting diode by Γ-valley transport

Abstract

Group-IV materials for monolithic integration with silicon optoelectronic systems are being extensively studied. As a part of efforts, light emission from germanium has been pursued with the objective of evolving germanium into an efficient light source for optical communication systems. In this study, we demonstrate room-temperature electroluminescence from germanium in an Al(0.3)Ga(0.7)As/Ge heterojunction light-emitting diode without any complicated manipulation for alternating material properties of germanium. Electroluminescence peaks were observed near 1550 nm and the energy around this wavelength corresponds to that emitted from direct recombination at the Γ-valley of germanium.