A Pathway to Type-I Band Alignment in Ge/Si Core-Shell Nanowires

Abstract

We investigate the electronic band structures of Ge/Si core-shell nanowires (CSNWs) and devise a way to realize the electron quantum well at Ge core atoms with first-principles calculations. We reveal that the electronic band engineering by the quantum confinement and the lattice strain can induce the type-I/II band alignment transition, and the resulting type-I band alignment generates the electron quantum well in Ge/Si CSNWs. We also find that the type-I/II transition in Ge/Si CSNWs is highly related to the direct to indirect band gap transition through the analysis of charge density and band structures. In terms of the quantum confinement, for [100] and [111] directional Ge/Si CSNWs, the type-I/II transition can be obtained by decreasing the diameters, whereas a [110] directional CSNW preserves the type-II band alignment even at diameters as small as 1 nm. By applying a compressive strain on [110] CSNWs, the type-I band alignment can be formed. Our results suggest that Ge/Si CSNWs can have the type-I band alignment characteristics by the band structure engineering, which enables both n-type and p-type quantum-well transistors to be fabricated using Ge/Si CSNWs for high-speed logic applications.