Effect of Ga⁺ focused ion beam etching on photoluminescence of AlGaAs/GaAs heterostructure

The effect of focused ion beam (FIB) etching by 30 keV Ga⁺ on photoluminescence of AlGaAs/GaAs heterostructure is studied. During etching process, high-energy ions induce radiation defects that lead to a decrease of heterostructure internal quantum efficiency of luminescence. We used the SRIM software to simulate the radiation defects penetration depths in AlGaAs/GaAs heterostructure, then carried out FIB etching guided by received information. Annealing of the structure at 300 °C showed partial recovery of the internal quantum efficiency. Subsequent annealing at 620 °C showed almost full recovery of quantum efficiency depending on the etching depth. Experimental findings allowed us to affirm that FIB etching with subsequent annealing is a potential tool for making photonic nanodevices. (paper)