Investigation of GaAsBi epitaxial layers for THz emitters pumped by long-wavelength fiber lasers

Abstract Herein we report the studies on the GaBiAs terahertz emitters. The molecular beam epitaxy grown thin films were subjected to structural and optical characterization. Inhomogeneity of Bi concentration in the samples is confirmed by XRD, PL and EDS studies. Investigations on the generation characteristics of the fabricated bow-tie photoconductive antennas were carried out via the Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. The collected data indicate a pattern of change in the shape of the spectra with increasing bismuth concentration, namely, a sharp drop in the low-frequency part (0.1–0.2 THz) simultaneously with a noticeable increase in intensity in the range 0.3–1 THz with a pronounced maximum at frequencies of ~0.4 THz. The deterioration of the THz power to average photocurrent ratio can be explained by a general decrease in the electron mobility, caused both by a large number of structural defects and by a large local heating of the crystal.