Optical gain in (Zn,Cd)SeZn(S,Se) quantum wells as a function of temperature (original) (raw)

We have investigated the mechanism of stimulated emission in ZnCdSe-ZnSSe quantum wells through measurements of the optical gain spectrum between 77 and 270 K. We also calculated the optical gain using a model which included many-body effects and found excellent agreement with our measurements. Our results are inconsistent with an excitonic gain mechanism and we conclude that the stimulated emission arises from an electron-hole plasma in our samples. However, we find that the electron-hole Coulomb interaction is still significant at room temperature in II-VI heterostructures.