Resonant tunneling in (001)- and (111)-oriented III-V double-barrier heterostructures under transverse and longitudinal stresses

Calculations of the effects of external stress on the current-voltage characteristics of double-barrier (001)- and (111)-oriented resonant tunneling devices are presented. Crystal strains arising from the application of external pressure and, in pseudomorphic structures, lattice mismatch cause shifts in the conduction and valence bands of the well and barrier layers with respect to the unstrained alignment. For certain stress orientations piezoelectric effects give rise to internal electric fields parallel to the current direction. The combined piezoelectric and band-structure effects modulate the transmission resonances which control the shape of the current versus voltage characteristics of the structures.