Pierre-Marie COULON | University of Bath (original) (raw)

Uploads

Papers by Pierre-Marie COULON

We report the ability to control relative InN incorporation in InGaN/GaN quantum wells (QWs) grow... more We report the ability to control relative InN incorporation in InGaN/GaN quantum wells (QWs) grown on the semi-polar and non-polar facets of a core-shell nanorod LED structure by varying the growth conditions. A study of the cathodoluminescence emitted from series of structures with different growth temperatures and pressures for the InGaN QW layer revealed that increasing the growth pressure had the effect of increasing InN incorporation on the semi-polar facets, while increasing the growth temperature improves the uniformity of light emission from the QWs on the non-polar facets.

Microcavities based on group-III nitride material offer a notable platform for the investigation ... more Microcavities based on group-III nitride material offer a notable platform for the investigation of light-matter interactions as well as the development of devices such as high efficiency light emitting diodes (LEDs) and low-threshold nanolasers. Disk or tube geometries in particular are attractive for low-threshold lasing applications due to their ability to support high finesse whispering gallery modes (WGMs) and small modal volumes. In this article we present the fabrication of homogenous and dense arrays of axial InGaN/GaN nanotubes via a combination of displacement Talbot lithography (DTL) for patterning and inductively coupled plasma top-down dry-etching. Optical characterization highlights the homogeneous emission from nanotube structures. Power-dependent continuous excitation reveals a non-uniform light distribution within a single nanotube, with vertical confinement between the bottom and top facets, and radial confinement within the active region. Finite-difference time-domain simulations, taking into account the particular shape of the outer diameter, indicate that the cavity mode of a single nanotube has a mixed WGM-vertical Fabry-Perot mode (FPM) nature. Additional simulations demonstrate that the improvement of the shape symmetry and dimensions primarily influence the Q-factor of the WGMs whereas the position of the active region impacts the coupling efficiency with one or a family of vertical FPMs. These results show that regular arrays of axial InGaN/GaN nanotubes can be achieved via a low-cost, fast and large-scale process based on DTL and top-down etching. These techniques open a new perspective for cost effective fabrication of nano-LED and nano-laser structures along with biochemical sensing applications.

III-nitride core-shell nanorods are promising for the development of high efficiency light emitti... more III-nitride core-shell nanorods are promising for the development of high efficiency light emitting diodes and novel optical devices. We reveal the nanoscale optical and structural properties of core-shell InGaN nanorods formed by combined top-down etching and regrowth to achieve non-polar sidewalls with a low density of extended defects. While the luminescence is uniform along the non-polar {1–100} sidewalls, nano-cathodoluminescence shows a sharp reduction in the luminescent intensity at the intersection of the non-polar {1–100} facets. The reduction in the luminescent intensity is accompanied by a reduction in the emission energy localised at the apex of the corners. Correlative compositional analysis reveals an increasing indium content towards the corner except at the apex itself. We propose that the observed variations in the structure and chemistry are responsible for the changes in the optical properties at the corners of the nanorods. The insights revealed by nano-cathodoluminescence will aid in the future development of higher efficiency core-shell nanorods.

GaN/InGaN core−shell nanorods are promising for optoelectronic applications due to the absence of... more GaN/InGaN core−shell nanorods are promising for optoelectronic applications due to the absence of polarization-related electric fields on the sidewalls, a lower defect density, a larger emission volume, and strain relaxation at the free surfaces. The core−shell geometry allows the growth of thicker InGaN shell layers, which would improve the efficiency of light emitting diodes. However, the growth mode of such layers by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy is poorly understood. Through a combination of nanofabrication, epitaxial growth, and detailed characterization, this work reveals an evolution in the growth mode of InGaN epitaxial shells, from a two-dimensional (2D) growth mode to three-dimensional (3D) striated growth without additional line defect formation with increasing layer thickness. Measurements of the indium distribution show fluctuations along the <10−10> directions, with low and high indium composition associated with the 2D and 3D growth modes, respectively. Atomic steps at the GaN/InGaN core−shell interface were observed to occur with a similar frequency as quasi-periodic indium fluctuations along [0001] observed within the 2D layer, to provide evidence that the resulting local strain relief at the steps acts as the trigger for a change of growth mode by elastic relaxation. This study demonstrates that misfit dislocation generation during the growth of wider InGaN shell layers can be avoided by using pre-etched GaN nanorods. Significantly, this enables the growth of absorption-based devices and light-emitting diodes with emissive layers wide enough to mitigate efficiency droop.

Core–shell indium gallium nitride (InGaN)/gallium nitride (GaN) structures are attractive as ligh... more Core–shell indium gallium nitride (InGaN)/gallium nitride (GaN) structures are attractive as light emitters due to the large nonpolar surface of rod-like cores with their longitudinal axis aligned along the c-direction. These facets do not suffer from the quantum-confined Stark effect that limits the thickness of quantum wells and efficiency in conventional light-emitting devices. Understanding InGaN growth on these submicron three-dimensional structures is important to optimize optoelectronic device performance. In this work, the influence of reactor
parameters was determined and compared. GaN nanorods (NRs) with both {11-20} a-plane and {10-10} m-plane nonpolar facets were prepared to investigate the impact of metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy reactor parameters on the characteristics of a thick (38 to 85 nm) overgrown
InGaN shell. The morphology and optical emission properties of the InGaN layers were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and cathodoluminescence
hyperspectral imaging. The study reveals that reactor pressure has an important impact on the InN mole fraction on the f10-10g m-plane facets, even at a reduced growth rate. The sample grown at 750°C and 100 mbar had an InN mole fraction of 25% on the f10-10g facets of the NRs.

Controlling the long-range homogeneity of core−shell InGaN/GaN layers is essential for their use ... more Controlling the long-range homogeneity of core−shell InGaN/GaN layers is essential for their use in light-emitting devices. This paper demonstrates variations in optical emission energy as low as ∼7 meV·μm −1 along the m-plane facets from core−shell InGaN/GaN single quantum wells as measured through high-resolution cathodolumines-cence hyperspectral imaging. The layers were grown by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy on etched GaN nanorod arrays with a pitch of 2 μm. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy and spatially resolved energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy measurements demonstrate a long-range InN-content and thickness homogeneity along the entire 1.2 μm length of the m-plane. Such homogeneous emission was found on the m-plane despite the observation of short-range compositional fluctuations in the InGaN single quantum well. The ability to achieve this uniform optical emission from InGaN/GaN core−shell layers is critical to enable them to compete with and replace conventional planar light-emitting devices.

Applied Physics Express, 2015

Hydride vapor phase epitaxy of GaN on silicon covered by nanostructures U Jahn, M Musolino, J Läh... more Hydride vapor phase epitaxy of GaN on silicon covered by nanostructures U Jahn, M Musolino, J Lähnemann et al. Defect reduction methods for III-nitride heteroepitaxial films grown along nonpolar and semipolar orientations P Vennéguès Ga-polar GaN nanocolumn arrays with semipolar faceted tips A Urban, J Malindretos, J-H Klein-Wiele et al. Structural characterization of selective area growth GaN nanowires by non-destructive optical and electrical techniques

Self-assembled catalyst-free GaN micropillars grown on (0001) sapphire substrates by metal organi... more Self-assembled catalyst-free GaN micropillars grown on (0001) sapphire substrates by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy are investigated. Transmission electron microscopy, as well as KOH etching, shows the systematic presence of two domains of opposite polarity within each single micropillar. The analysis of the initial growth stages indicates that such double polarity originates at the micropillar/substrate interface, i.e., during the micropillar nucleation, and it propagates along the micropillar. Furthermore, dislocations are also generated at the wire/substrate interface, but bend after several hundreds of nanometers. This leads to micropillars several tens of micrometers in length that are dislocation-free. Spatially resolved cathodoluminescence and microphotoluminescence show large differences in the optical properties of each polarity domain, suggesting unequal impurity/dopant/vacancy incorporation depending on the polarity.

physica status solidi (b), 2015

Phone: þ33 493 954 206, Fax: þ33493 958 361

Optics Express, 2012

GaN microwires grown by metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy and with radii typically on the order o... more GaN microwires grown by metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy and with radii typically on the order of 1-5 micrometers exhibit a number of resonances in their photoluminescence spectra. These resonances include whispering gallery modes and transverse Fabry-Perot modes. A detailed spectroscopic study by polarization-resolved microphotoluminescence, in combination with electron microscopy images, has enabled to differentiate both kinds of modes and determined their main spectral properties. Finally, the dispersion of the ordinary and extraordinary refractive indices of strainfree GaN in the visible-UV range have been obtained thanks to the numerical simulation of the observed modes.

We report the ability to control relative InN incorporation in InGaN/GaN quantum wells (QWs) grow... more We report the ability to control relative InN incorporation in InGaN/GaN quantum wells (QWs) grown on the semi-polar and non-polar facets of a core-shell nanorod LED structure by varying the growth conditions. A study of the cathodoluminescence emitted from series of structures with different growth temperatures and pressures for the InGaN QW layer revealed that increasing the growth pressure had the effect of increasing InN incorporation on the semi-polar facets, while increasing the growth temperature improves the uniformity of light emission from the QWs on the non-polar facets.

Microcavities based on group-III nitride material offer a notable platform for the investigation ... more Microcavities based on group-III nitride material offer a notable platform for the investigation of light-matter interactions as well as the development of devices such as high efficiency light emitting diodes (LEDs) and low-threshold nanolasers. Disk or tube geometries in particular are attractive for low-threshold lasing applications due to their ability to support high finesse whispering gallery modes (WGMs) and small modal volumes. In this article we present the fabrication of homogenous and dense arrays of axial InGaN/GaN nanotubes via a combination of displacement Talbot lithography (DTL) for patterning and inductively coupled plasma top-down dry-etching. Optical characterization highlights the homogeneous emission from nanotube structures. Power-dependent continuous excitation reveals a non-uniform light distribution within a single nanotube, with vertical confinement between the bottom and top facets, and radial confinement within the active region. Finite-difference time-domain simulations, taking into account the particular shape of the outer diameter, indicate that the cavity mode of a single nanotube has a mixed WGM-vertical Fabry-Perot mode (FPM) nature. Additional simulations demonstrate that the improvement of the shape symmetry and dimensions primarily influence the Q-factor of the WGMs whereas the position of the active region impacts the coupling efficiency with one or a family of vertical FPMs. These results show that regular arrays of axial InGaN/GaN nanotubes can be achieved via a low-cost, fast and large-scale process based on DTL and top-down etching. These techniques open a new perspective for cost effective fabrication of nano-LED and nano-laser structures along with biochemical sensing applications.

III-nitride core-shell nanorods are promising for the development of high efficiency light emitti... more III-nitride core-shell nanorods are promising for the development of high efficiency light emitting diodes and novel optical devices. We reveal the nanoscale optical and structural properties of core-shell InGaN nanorods formed by combined top-down etching and regrowth to achieve non-polar sidewalls with a low density of extended defects. While the luminescence is uniform along the non-polar {1–100} sidewalls, nano-cathodoluminescence shows a sharp reduction in the luminescent intensity at the intersection of the non-polar {1–100} facets. The reduction in the luminescent intensity is accompanied by a reduction in the emission energy localised at the apex of the corners. Correlative compositional analysis reveals an increasing indium content towards the corner except at the apex itself. We propose that the observed variations in the structure and chemistry are responsible for the changes in the optical properties at the corners of the nanorods. The insights revealed by nano-cathodoluminescence will aid in the future development of higher efficiency core-shell nanorods.

GaN/InGaN core−shell nanorods are promising for optoelectronic applications due to the absence of... more GaN/InGaN core−shell nanorods are promising for optoelectronic applications due to the absence of polarization-related electric fields on the sidewalls, a lower defect density, a larger emission volume, and strain relaxation at the free surfaces. The core−shell geometry allows the growth of thicker InGaN shell layers, which would improve the efficiency of light emitting diodes. However, the growth mode of such layers by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy is poorly understood. Through a combination of nanofabrication, epitaxial growth, and detailed characterization, this work reveals an evolution in the growth mode of InGaN epitaxial shells, from a two-dimensional (2D) growth mode to three-dimensional (3D) striated growth without additional line defect formation with increasing layer thickness. Measurements of the indium distribution show fluctuations along the <10−10> directions, with low and high indium composition associated with the 2D and 3D growth modes, respectively. Atomic steps at the GaN/InGaN core−shell interface were observed to occur with a similar frequency as quasi-periodic indium fluctuations along [0001] observed within the 2D layer, to provide evidence that the resulting local strain relief at the steps acts as the trigger for a change of growth mode by elastic relaxation. This study demonstrates that misfit dislocation generation during the growth of wider InGaN shell layers can be avoided by using pre-etched GaN nanorods. Significantly, this enables the growth of absorption-based devices and light-emitting diodes with emissive layers wide enough to mitigate efficiency droop.

Core–shell indium gallium nitride (InGaN)/gallium nitride (GaN) structures are attractive as ligh... more Core–shell indium gallium nitride (InGaN)/gallium nitride (GaN) structures are attractive as light emitters due to the large nonpolar surface of rod-like cores with their longitudinal axis aligned along the c-direction. These facets do not suffer from the quantum-confined Stark effect that limits the thickness of quantum wells and efficiency in conventional light-emitting devices. Understanding InGaN growth on these submicron three-dimensional structures is important to optimize optoelectronic device performance. In this work, the influence of reactor
parameters was determined and compared. GaN nanorods (NRs) with both {11-20} a-plane and {10-10} m-plane nonpolar facets were prepared to investigate the impact of metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy reactor parameters on the characteristics of a thick (38 to 85 nm) overgrown
InGaN shell. The morphology and optical emission properties of the InGaN layers were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and cathodoluminescence
hyperspectral imaging. The study reveals that reactor pressure has an important impact on the InN mole fraction on the f10-10g m-plane facets, even at a reduced growth rate. The sample grown at 750°C and 100 mbar had an InN mole fraction of 25% on the f10-10g facets of the NRs.

Controlling the long-range homogeneity of core−shell InGaN/GaN layers is essential for their use ... more Controlling the long-range homogeneity of core−shell InGaN/GaN layers is essential for their use in light-emitting devices. This paper demonstrates variations in optical emission energy as low as ∼7 meV·μm −1 along the m-plane facets from core−shell InGaN/GaN single quantum wells as measured through high-resolution cathodolumines-cence hyperspectral imaging. The layers were grown by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy on etched GaN nanorod arrays with a pitch of 2 μm. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy and spatially resolved energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy measurements demonstrate a long-range InN-content and thickness homogeneity along the entire 1.2 μm length of the m-plane. Such homogeneous emission was found on the m-plane despite the observation of short-range compositional fluctuations in the InGaN single quantum well. The ability to achieve this uniform optical emission from InGaN/GaN core−shell layers is critical to enable them to compete with and replace conventional planar light-emitting devices.

Applied Physics Express, 2015

Hydride vapor phase epitaxy of GaN on silicon covered by nanostructures U Jahn, M Musolino, J Läh... more Hydride vapor phase epitaxy of GaN on silicon covered by nanostructures U Jahn, M Musolino, J Lähnemann et al. Defect reduction methods for III-nitride heteroepitaxial films grown along nonpolar and semipolar orientations P Vennéguès Ga-polar GaN nanocolumn arrays with semipolar faceted tips A Urban, J Malindretos, J-H Klein-Wiele et al. Structural characterization of selective area growth GaN nanowires by non-destructive optical and electrical techniques

Self-assembled catalyst-free GaN micropillars grown on (0001) sapphire substrates by metal organi... more Self-assembled catalyst-free GaN micropillars grown on (0001) sapphire substrates by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy are investigated. Transmission electron microscopy, as well as KOH etching, shows the systematic presence of two domains of opposite polarity within each single micropillar. The analysis of the initial growth stages indicates that such double polarity originates at the micropillar/substrate interface, i.e., during the micropillar nucleation, and it propagates along the micropillar. Furthermore, dislocations are also generated at the wire/substrate interface, but bend after several hundreds of nanometers. This leads to micropillars several tens of micrometers in length that are dislocation-free. Spatially resolved cathodoluminescence and microphotoluminescence show large differences in the optical properties of each polarity domain, suggesting unequal impurity/dopant/vacancy incorporation depending on the polarity.

physica status solidi (b), 2015

Phone: þ33 493 954 206, Fax: þ33493 958 361

Optics Express, 2012

GaN microwires grown by metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy and with radii typically on the order o... more GaN microwires grown by metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy and with radii typically on the order of 1-5 micrometers exhibit a number of resonances in their photoluminescence spectra. These resonances include whispering gallery modes and transverse Fabry-Perot modes. A detailed spectroscopic study by polarization-resolved microphotoluminescence, in combination with electron microscopy images, has enabled to differentiate both kinds of modes and determined their main spectral properties. Finally, the dispersion of the ordinary and extraordinary refractive indices of strainfree GaN in the visible-UV range have been obtained thanks to the numerical simulation of the observed modes.