EEE 460: Optoelectronics Laboratory

Experiment No. 1
Name of the Experiment: Light Absorption and Emission Properties of Materials

Objectives:

The objectives of this experiment are the following:

 To calculate and analyze absorption characteristics of materials numerically.
 To calculate and analyze spontaneous emission characteristics of materials numerically.

Prelab:

i. From available online resources, collect nr vs. λ and κ vs. λ data files (in Excel or text
format) for GaAs. These data files must be brought for laboratory tasks.
ii. Collect emission spectra of GaAs from literature.
iii. Reading assignment: relevant section for referred textbook.

Part A: Calculation and Analysis of Absorption Characteristics of a Material

Theory:

Absorption characteristics of materials manifest themselves in the absorption spectrum, which

spans over a wide range, extending from near-bandgap energies to low-energy transitions
involving free carriers and lattice vibrations. The absorption coefficient of a material varies
depending on whether the optical transition is direct or indirect in nature. For an allowed direct
transition, the absorption coefficient is given by
3/2
q 2 m01/2  2mr* 

f cv
  Eg  .
1/2
  
4 2 0cnr  m0  

For forbidden direct transition, the above relation is modified as follows:

5/2
q 2 m01/2  2mr*  f cv'
   Eg  ,
3/2
  
6 2 0cnr  m0  

where the oscillator strength f cv' is several orders smaller in magnitude than f cv .

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Light absorption resulting from indirect transitions is governed by phonon absorption/emission. In
this case, the dependence of the absorption coefficient on incident photon energy is given by the
relation:

   Eg  E p     Eg  E p 
2 2

   E p / k BT
.
1 1 e
E p / k BT
e

In addition to the mentioned transitions, light absorption characteristics of a material are also
modified by exciton, donor-acceptor, and impurity band transitions. Intra-band transitions
resulting from free-carrier absorption influence absorption characteristics at long wavelengths of
the electromagnetic spectra.

It is to be noted that if extinction coefficient κ (which is the imaginary part of the complex
refractive index) is known beforehand from experiments or theory, the absorption coefficient can
be directly calculated using the relation:

4



Laboratory Tasks:

1. Theoretically calculate the absorption coefficient of GaAs considering dispersion assuming

direct transitions only. Compare your calculated values with the value you obtain from the
extinction coefficient of GaAs.
2. (a) Considering the reported absorption coefficient of Silicon [1], obtain the proportionality
constant for the relation:
   Eg  E p     Eg  E p 
2 2

  E /k T
.
e p B 1 1 e p B
E /k T

(b) Next, based on your derived value of the proportionality constant, plot the absorption
coefficient as a function of energy for temperatures ranging from 250 K to 415 K. Assume
that the material bandgap does not change with temperature.
(c) Now repeat Task 2(b) considering the temperature dependence of material bandgap.
Use Varshni relation to include temperature dependence of material bandgap.

Tasks for Report Writing on Part A:

1. Without considering material dispersion (i.e., assuming refractive index to be independent

of wavelength), calculate and compare the absorption coefficient of a material for allowed
direct transition and forbidden direct transition.

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 2. Collect experimentally reported absorption coefficient values of Silicon, InP and SiO2.
Theoretically calculate absorption coefficients for these materials using their extinction
coefficients and compare with the experimental results. Also, comment on the possible
origins of the differences between theoretical calculations and experimental results.
(Note: in your report, mention the research paper from where you collected the
experimental absorption coefficients and the extinction coefficient values)

Part B: Calculation of Spontaneous Emission Spectra from the Absorption Coefficient

Theory:

The absorption and spontaneous emission spectra are related by the principle of detailed balance
as calculated by van Roosbroeck and Shockley. At thermodynamic equilibrium, the rate of
spontaneous photon emission 𝑅𝑠𝑝 (𝜈) at frequency ν in an interval 𝑑𝜈 is given by

𝑅𝑠𝑝 (𝜈)𝑑𝜈 = 𝑃𝑎𝑏𝑠 (𝜈)𝜑(𝜈)𝑑𝜈,

where 𝑃𝑎𝑏𝑠 (𝜈) is the probability of absorbing a photon of energy ℎ𝜈 per unit time, and 𝜑(𝜈)𝑑𝜈 is
the radiation density of frequency 𝜈 in an interval 𝑑𝜈. 𝜑(𝜈)𝑑𝜈 is obtained from Planck’s radiation
law as:

8𝜋𝜈 3 𝑛𝑟3 1
𝜑(𝜈)𝑑𝜈 = 𝑑𝜈.
𝑐 3 ℎ𝜈
exp ( )−1
𝑘𝐵 𝑇

If the absorption coefficient of the photon is 𝛼(𝜈) and it travels with a velocity 𝑣 = 𝑐⁄𝑛𝑟 in the
material with refractive index 𝑛𝑟 , then the mean lifetime of the photon is given by 𝜏(𝜈) = 1⁄𝛼(𝜈) 𝑣
and absorption probability is given by

1 𝑐
𝑃𝑎𝑏𝑠 = = 𝛼(𝜈)𝑣 = 𝛼(𝜈) .
𝜏(𝜈) 𝑛𝑟

So, we get

α(𝜈)8𝜋𝜈 3 𝑛𝑟2
𝑅𝑠𝑝 (𝜈)𝑑ν = 𝑑ν,
ℎ𝜈
𝑐 2 [exp ( ) − 1]
𝑘𝐵 𝑇

which expresses the desired relation between absorption and emission spectra. The total emission
rate per unit volume is obtained by integrating the equation over all frequencies, or energies, as

8𝜋𝑛𝑟2 (𝑘𝐵 𝑇)4 ∞ α(𝜈)𝑢3

𝑅𝑠𝑝 = ∫ 𝑢 ,
𝑐 2 ℎ4 0 𝑒 −1

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where 𝑢 = ℎ𝜈 ⁄𝑘𝐵 𝑇. This formulation is valid for any transition between a higher energy and a
lower-energy state.

Laboratory Tasks:

1. Numerically calculate the total spontaneous emission rate of GaAs assuming direct
transitions only using the absorption coefficient calculated during Laboratory Task 1 of
Part A. Plot the spontaneous emission rate of GaAs as a function of photon energy. Also,
plot the wavelength dependence of the spontaneous emission rate of GaAs.

Tasks for Report Writing on Part B:

1. Compare your calculated spectra with the spectra collected from literature.
2. Collect experimentally reported spontaneous spectra values of GaN and InP. Theoretically
plot the emission spectra for these materials and compare with the experimental results.
Also comment on the possible origins of the differences between theoretical calculations
and experimental results.

Reference:

1. G.G. Macfarlane, T.P. McLean, J.E. Quarrington, V. Roberts, “Exciton and phonon effects
in the absorption spectra of germanium and silicon”, Journal of Physics and Chemistry of
Solids, Volume 8, 1959, Pages 388-392
2. Chapter 3 of Semiconductor Optoelectronic Devices (2nd Edition) by Pallab Bhattacharya