Optical properties of BeZnO layers studied by photoluminescence spectroscopy

Epitaxial BeZnO layers, the candidates for active barrier layers composed of the ZnO/BexZn1−xO quantum well structure, were successfully grown using the hybrid beam deposition method. The Be rate of x in the grown BexZn1−xO layer was estimated to be 0.11. The optical properties caused by the thermal quenching phenomenon of BeZnO, an ultraviolet light emitting material, were studied using the temperature dependence of photoluminescence spectra. Emission of the neutral donor-bound exciton shows a tendency to quench the intensity and extend the spectral width with increasing temperatures. This tendency is related to the phonons generated by the lattice vibration of the host material in BeZnO. These findings led us to conclude that the phonons may be participating in the quenching process.