Symmetry of electron states and optical transitions in GaN/AlN hexagonal quantum dots

Abstract

AbstractThe exact symmetry of hexagonal quantum dots (QDs) made of materials with the wurtzite structure such as GaN/AlN QDs for example, is described by the C3v point group and does not depend on the existence of a wetting layer. We have determined the possible exact symmetries of electron states and vibration modes in the dots and derived the optical selection rules. The vibration modes involved in the Frölich interaction are totally symmetric with respect to the C3v group and can induce transitions only between states with the same symmetry. The not totally symmetric modes provide other channels for lowering the energy of excited carriers and excitons by connecting states with symmetries different one from another. The rapid decay of created polarons, due to the short lifetime of vibration modes, releases the carriers and excitons into ground levels. In the envelope function approximation (EFA), the symmetry of the dots is represented by the C6v point group. Interband transitions are allowed only between states whose envelope functions have the same symmetry. EFA artificially increases the number of dark exciton symmetries. (© 2004 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)