Propagation Characteristics of Superlattice Potentials and their Optimization

Propagation of charged carriers in semiconductor superlattices is analyzed on the basis of the effective mass approximation with appropriate boundary conditions at heterojunctions taken into account. Applying the finite element method, clarified are the effects of details of the potential profile, such as linear and smooth gradings and random fluctuations, on characteristics of superlattices which are expected to work as collector barriers and energy filters in electronic devices.