Remote n-type modulation doping of InAs quantum wells by ‘‘deep acceptors’’ in AlSb

Due to the fact that impurities normally change their doping characters when they undergo shallow to deep transitions or deep-to-false-valence transitions, a single defect, such as a cation on an Sb site, can explain all of the following facts for nonintentionally doped AlxGa1−xSb alloys and InAs/AlxGa1−xSb superlattices and quantum-well structures: (i) Bulk GaSb is p type; (ii) bulk AlSb is semi-insulating; (iii) InAs/AlSb superlattices with InAs quantum wells thicker than a critical thickness dc(x=1.0) are n type, where the InAs shallow–deep critical thickness function dc(x) is around ≂100–≂150 Å for 0.5<x≤1.0 for InAs/AlxGa1−xSb superlattices; (iv) InAs/AlSb superlattices with InAs quantum wells thinner than dc(x=1.0) are semi-insulating. In addition, the theory predicts that Al0.5Ga0.5Sb and AlSb will be semi-insulating when nonintentionally doped, but can be converted to p type by the application of hydrostatic pressure P: P≳90 kbar and P≳150 kbar, respectively. These changes of doping character, which lie outside the conventional effective-mass theory, occur often in type-II band-alignment systems, such as InAs/AlxGa1−xSb.