Spin exchange in excitons, the quasicubic model and deformation potentials in II-VI compounds

The effect of the spin-exchange interaction between electron and hole is investigated for the case of excitons originating from one of the p-like valence bands and an s-like conduction band, as is the case for IIb-VIb compounds. A general exciton matrix is constructed, starting from the work of Pikus. It includes spin-orbit, crystal-field, spin-exchange, and deformation-potential interactions. Use of this matrix then allows a theoretical fit to our experimental data which describes the shift of exciton levels under uniaxial pressure in ZnO, CdS, and CdSe. This fit results in the determination of six deformation potentials, two spin-orbit parameters, the crystal-field parameter, and the exchange parameter. The general theory, when adapted to the zinc-blende structure, allows us to fit our data on cubic ZnS and ZnSe, resulting in a determination of two deformation potentials and the spin-exchange parameter for each compound.