Oscillator strength reduction induced by external electric fields in self-assembled quantum dots and rings

Abstract

We have carried out continuous wave and time resolved photoluminescence experiments in self-assembled In(Ga)As quantum dots and quantum rings embedded in field effect structure devices. In both kinds of nanostructures, we find a noticeable increase of the exciton radiative lifetime with the external voltage bias that must be attributed to the field-induced polarizability of the confined electron hole pair. The interplay between the exciton radiative recombination and the electronic carrier tunneling in the presence of a stationary electric field is therefore investigated and compared with a numerical calculation based on the effective mass approximation. © 2007 The American Physical Society.