Quantum-well states of InAs/AlSb resonant-tunneling diodes

Abstract

We study transmission resonances associated with the n=1 quantum-well states of InAs/AlSb resonant-tunneling diodes using an empirical tight-binding model. We find that the transmission tends to be fairly sensitive to the wave vector in the plane of the interface, indicating that the usual expression for the tunneling current (which neglects this explicit dependence) is most likely not a good approximation. We show how this behavior is related to the E(k) relation for the InAs conduction band. Finally, we examine the envelope functions associated with the quasibound states, and discuss how their appearance relates to the orbitals of which they are composed.