Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 February 2011
We describe studies of luminescence and lateral transport properties of excited carriers in GaAs- A1GaAs multiple quantum well (MQW) structures by cathodoluminescence measurements in a scanning electron microscope. We examine the effect of in-plane, etch-defined feature size on MQW luminescence efficiency and variability, and determine the diffusion length and its temperature dependence from ˜ 8K to 250K. Our measurements also provide information about nonradiative surface recombination velocity at the side walls of etch-defined MQW structures.