GaAs–AlGaAs heterostructure thyristors with completely optical transfer of emitter current

Abstract

Several variants of thyristors based on GaAs-AlGaAs heterostructures with optical transfer of the emitter current are considered. The possibility that thyristors with fully optical transfer of the emitter current can be, in principle, created is demonstrated by means of the results of a study of n-p-n and p-n-p optoelectronic transistors in which the emitter current is converted into light, this light, in turn, being converted into a collector current. Structures of optoelectronic switches of this kind are presented. A switch comprising three constituent transistors has been suggested and fabricated taking into account specific features of the technique for growth of undoped GaAs layers and fabrication of high-voltage p0-n0 junctions with back-ground impurities from these layers, which makes the turn-on delay cardinally shorter and raises the working frequency.