Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 25, 2026

High Resolution Phonon-assisted Quasi-resonance Fluorescence Spectroscopy
Published on: June 28, 2016
Electron-polariton scattering in semiconductor microcavities
P G Lagoudakis1, M D Martin, J J Baumberg
1Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, United Kingdom.
Abstract:
In semiconductor microcavities, electron-polariton scattering has been proposed as an efficient process that can drive polaritons from the bottleneck region to the ground state, achieving Bose amplification of the optical emission. We present clear experimental observation of this process in a structure that allows control of the electron density and we report substantial enhancement of photoluminescence. We show that this enhancement is more effective at higher temperatures due to the different way that electron scattering processes either broaden or relax polaritons.
Related Concept Videos
Fermi Level Dynamics
Electron affinity in semiconductors refers to the energy gap between the minimum of its conduction band and the vacuum level and it is a critical parameter in determining how easily a semiconductor can accept additional electrons.
The work...
Metal-Semiconductor Junctions
Schottky Barriers
Schottky barriers arise when a metal with a work function (Φm) contacts a semiconductor with a different work function (Φs). Initially, electrons transfer until the Fermi levels of the metal and semiconductor align at equilibrium. For instance, if Φm > Φs, the semiconductor Fermi level is higher than the metal's before contact. The semiconductor's...
Semiconductors
Metals such as copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), or lead (Pb) have low resistivity and feature conduction bands that are either not fully occupied or overlap with the valence band, making a bandgap non-existent. This allows electrons in the highest energy levels of the valence band to easily transition to the conduction band upon gaining...
Types of Semiconductors
Fermi Level
At absolute zero temperature, electrons fill all energy states up to the Fermi level, leaving upper states empty. As the temperature rises,...
Carrier Generation and Recombination
This process is given by the generation rate G and is efficient due to the conservation of momentum between the valence band maximum and conduction band minimum.
Indirect generation involves an...

