The emission of a charged exciton in an InGaN quantum dot (QD) on top of a GaN pyramid is identified experimentally. The intensity of the charged exciton exhibits the expected competition with that of the single exciton, as observed in temperature-dependent micro-photoluminescence measurements, performed with different excitation energies. The non-zero charge state of this complex is further supported by time resolved micro-photoluminescence measurements, which excludes neutral alternatives of biexciton. The potential fluctuations in the vicinity of the QD that localizes the charge carriers are proposed to be responsible for the unequal supply of electrons and holes into the QD.

The dynamics of the exciton and the biexciton related emission from a single InGaN quantum dot (QD) have been measured by time-resolved microphotoluminescence spectroscopy. An exciton-biexciton pair of the same QD was identified by the combination of power dependence and polarization-resolved spectroscopy. Moreover, the spectral temperature evolution was utilized in order to distinguish the biexciton from a trion. Both the exciton and the biexciton related emission reveal mono-exponential decays corresponding to time constants of similar to 900 and similar to 500 ps, respectively. The obtained lifetime ratio of similar to 1.8 indicates that the QD is small, with a size comparable to the exciton Bohr radius.

Optical characterization of single quantum dots (QDs) by means of micro-photoluminescence (mu PL) will be reviewed. Both QDs formed in the Stranski-Krastanov mode as well as dots in the apex of pyramidal structures will be presented. For InGaAs/GaAs dots, several excitonic features with different charge states will be demonstrated. By varying the magnitude of an external electric or magnetic field and/or the temperature, it has been demonstrated that the transportation of carriers is affected and accordingly the charge state of a single QD can be tuned. In addition, we have shown that the charge state of the QD can be controlled also by pure optical means, i.e. by altering the photo excitation conditions. Based on the experience of the developed InAs/GaAs QD system, similar methods have been applied on the InGaN/GaN QD system. less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanThe coupling of LO phonons to the QD emission is experimentally examined for both charged and neutral excitons in single InGaAs/GaAs QDs in the apex of pyramidal structures. It is shown that the positively charged exciton exhibits a significantly weaker LO phonon coupling in the mu PL spectra than the neutral and negatively charged species, a fact, which is in consistency with model simulations performed.

We present a low-temperature micro-photoluminescence (mu-PL) study of ensembles of InAs/GaAs quantum dots (QDs) with respect to its circular polarization (rho(c)) for a manifold of experimental conditions such as single or dual laser excitation, different excitation energies (h upsilon(ex)), varying excitation powers (P(ex)) of both lasers, and with or without an external magnetic field (B(ext)). It is demonstrated that an essential rho(c) (less than= 40%) could be recorded depending on P(ex), even at B(ext) = 0 for h upsilon(ex) exceeding the PL energy of the wetting layer (E(WL)), while rho(c) remains negligible for h upsilon(ex) less than E(WL). To explain the data obtained, a model is developed according to which a nuclear magnetic field (B(N)) is created in the QDs by spin-polarized electrons. The B(N) plays a crucial role in the preservation of the electron spin, which otherwise effectively relaxes due to the presence of the anisotropic electron-hole exchange interaction (omega(ex)). The application of an additional infra-red laser gives rise to a population of excess holes in the QDs, thus producing positively charged excitons. In this case, omega(ex) = 0 and accordingly, rho(c) approximate to 40% at B(ext) = 0 is recorded, even for excitation with h upsilon(ex) less than E(WL).

Circular polarization studies of photoluminescence from the neutral (X⁰) and the positively charged (X⁺) exciton are reported for individual InAs/GaAs quantum dots (QDs). High polarization degrees, 60 % for X⁰ and 73 % for X⁺, were recorded without any external magnetic field applied. These studies show that that the QD polarization and population dynamics are controllable either by varying the photo-excitation intensity, or by using a second IR laser excitation.

A micro‐photoluminescence study of individual InAs/GaAs quantum dots is presented. It is demonstrated that by varying the strength of an applied magnetic field and/or the temperature, the charge state of a quantum dot can be tuned. The charge tuning mechanism is shown to be due to the modification of the electron and hole transport in the wetting layer plane prior to their capture into the quantum dot.

While efficient nuclear polarization has earlier been reported for the charged exciton in InAs/GaAs quantum dots at zero external magnetic field, we report here on a surprisingly high degree of circular polarization, up to approximate to 60%, for the neutral exciton emission in individual InAs/GaAs dots. This high degree of polarization is explained in terms of the appearance of an effective nuclear magnetic field which stabilizes the electron spin. The nuclear polarization is manifested in experiments as a detectable Overhauser shift. In turn, the nuclei located inside the dot are exposed to an effective electron magnetic field, the Knight field. This nuclear polarization is understood as being due to the dynamical nuclear polarization by an electron localized in the QD. The high degree of polarization for the neutral exciton is also suggested to be due to separate in-time capture of electrons and holes into the QD.

A high degree of spin polarization for the neutral exciton in individual InAs quantum dots, without any external magnetic field applied, is demonstrated. The polarization mechanism is shown to be due to the difference in capture time into the QD for the electrons and holes after photo excitation in the wetting layer. This leads to optical pumping of the QD nuclei by spin polarized electrons and hence suppression of the anisotropic electron—hole exchange interaction.

A high degree (approximate to 55%) of circular polarization has been observed for the neutral exciton in InAs/GaAs quantum dots (QDs). The possibility to record non- zero polarization of the neutral exciton is explained in terms of different capture times of the light electron compared with the heavier holes into the QDs from the wetting layer. This interpretation is supported by the progressive reduction of the polarization degree with increasing QD density, and also with increasing temperature.

We report on magneto-photoluminescence studies of InAs/GaAs quantum dots (QDs) of considerably different densities, from dense ensembles down to individual dots. It is found that a magnetic field applied in Faraday geometry decreases the photoluminescence (PL) intensity of OD ensembles, which is not accompanied by the corresponding increase of PL signal of the wetting layer on which ON are grown. The model suggested to explain these data assumes considerably different strengths of suppression of electron and hole fluxes by a magnetic field. This idea has been successfully checked in experiments on individual ON, where the PL spectra allow to directly monitor the charge state of a OD and, hence, to conclude about relative magnitudes of electron and hole fluxes toward the QD. Comparative studies of different individual QDs have revealed that the internal electric field in the sample (which was altered in the experiments in a controllable way) together with an external magnetic field will determine the charge state and emission intensity of the QDs.