Phonon-wind-based transport in InGaAs-InP quantum well under intense optical excitation

The microluminescence surface scan technique (MSST) is used to investigate the lateral transport of photocarriers in a thin InGaAs-InP quantum well, under high optical excitation intensity (0.3 to 30 $\mathrm{KW}/{\mathrm{cm}}^2)$ and in the temperature range from 7 to 200 K. The size of the in-plane photocarrier distribution depends on both optical excitation intensity and temperature. A phonon-wind-driven mechanism is used to explain the behavior of the distribution at temperatures below 15 K. Further, the attenuation of the phonon flux during the photocarrier cloud expansion plays a key role in the phonon-wind mechanism. Finally, it is found that the phonon wind becomes quenched at high optical excitation intensity, which is probably correlated to an increasing carrier velocity greater than the sound velocity.