| The quantum dot infrared photodetector is a very promising medium or long-term candidate to replace the older generations of infrared imagery devices. The objective of this work is to develop a model to determine the electric and optical properties of this type of device. We chose to study the quantum dot infrared photodetectors built in the InAs/InP system, because this system has been investigated theoretically relatively little. The novelty of our approach is that we separate the modelling into three parts. This reduces the complexity of the problem and permits us to emphasize connections between the quantum properties of the electronic bound states of the dots and the macroscopic properties of the photodetectors.; Throughout the work, we have exploited, as much as possible, the physical consequences of having thin quantum dots, by assuming a cylindrical shape with a height much smaller than the diameter. This simplified geometry permits us to explain experimental observations such as the form of the absorption spectrum and of the bound state energies, in a straightforward way. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
