Calculation of direct and indirect excitons in GaAs–Ga 1− xAl xAs coupled double quantum wells: Electric and magnetic fields and hydrostatic pressure effects

Abstract

A study of the electronic and optical properties of coupled double quantum wells is presented. Within the framework of the effective mass and parabolic-band approximations we have calculated the electron–hole and photoluminescence energy transitions under simultaneous effects of electric and magnetic fields. For that purpose, a variational procedure has been used, taking into account the effect of hydrostatic pressure. The electric field is taken to be oriented along the growth direction of the heterostructure whereas for the magnetic field both in-plane and in-growth directions have been considered. The results show that hydrostatic pressure is a useful tool to tune the direct and indirect exciton transitions in such heterostructures. It is shown that the photoluminescence peak energy transitions strongly depend on the external fields and hydrostatic pressure studied here. Furthermore, our numerical outcome is in good agreement with previous experimental findings at zero pressure in double quantum wells under applied electric and magnetic fields.