The Role of Internal Electric Fields in III-N Quantum Structure

Binary nitrides: of wurtzite GaN, AlN, InN, and their solid solutions represent a family of semiconductors of crucial importance for modern optoelectronics. Strained quantum wells, like GaN/AlGaN and specially InGaN/GaN, form active layers of the light emitters working in green-UV part of the spectrum. The operation of these devices strongly depends on the emission spectra of considered quantum structures which are greatly influenced by the presence of built-in electric fields. The electric field acting via quantum confined Stark effect in the mentioned structures changes the energies and intensity of the emitted light. The effect can lead to the spectral shift of a photo- and electroluminescence by many hundreds of meV. In this review we will briefly cover the influence of internal electric fields on both optical and electrical properties of nitride based heterostructures and quantum wells. We would like to draw reader's attention to the usefulness of high-pressure investigation in the study of electric fields in nitrides and to show how the interpretation of these experiments influences the way we calculate the electric fields in the quantum structures.