Carrier transport improvement in ZnO/MgZnO multiple-quantum-well ultraviolet light-emitting diodes by energy band modification on MgZnO barriers

Ultraviolet (UV) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) based on zinc oxide (ZnO) materials have been the subject of many investigations because of their potential applications. In this study, ZnO/MgZnO multiple-quantum-well UV LEDs with graded-composition barriers were developed and numerically analyzed. The simulation results demonstrate that an optimized LED with a Mg composition graded from 24% to 2% in each triangular barrier exhibits the highest internal quantum efficiency (IQE) (88.0%) at 200 A/cm2, showing a 31.3% increase compared with the conventional LED with square barriers. This enhancement is attributed to the modified energy band structures that improve the symmetry in carrier transportation and increase the radiative recombination rate in each ZnO quantum well, thus enhancing the IQE of the device. Additionally, the different band-offset ratios of the MgZnO/ZnO and InGaN/GaN heterojunctions, which lead to the different carrier transport and electroluminescence properties of the ZnO- and GaN-based LEDs, were discussed here, providing researchers new insights into device design of ZnO-based LEDs.