Diffusion length of photoexcited carriers in GaN

When additional carriers are introduced in a material with a non uniform concentration, they tend to diffuse on a scale given by their diffusion length. This parameter can be measured by different methods. Depending on the conditions, different values can be found as the recombination mechanisms differ. In this paper, we present the situation in GaN with various experiments including the photocarrier grating method, photoluminescence and the spectral response in photoconductors. We show that the diffusion length varies from 0.1 mu m to a few mu m depending on experimental conditions. The interpretation is given based on the diffusion equations and on the analysis of the recombinations. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.