Simulation of photon transport in resonant double-diode structures

The optical and electrical properties of planar optoelectronic devices are well known, but their fully self-consistent modeling has remained a serious challenge. At the same time, the improving device fabrication capabilities and shrinking device sizes make it possible to reach higher efficiencies and develop totally new device applications. Success in this context, however, requires sophisticated device modeling frameworks, such as fully self-consistent models of optical and electrical characteristics. In this article, we explore the predictions provided by the recently introduced interference radiative transfer (IRT) model and apply it to a simplified double-diode structure presently used to study the possibility of electroluminescent cooling. The purpose of this proof-of-principle study is to show that the IRT model is straightforward to implement once one has access to the dyadic Green's functions, and that it produces solutions that satisfy the more general quantized fluctuational electrodynamics framework. We examine the photon numbers, propagating optical intensities and net radiative recombination rates from the IRT model solved by assuming a constant quasi-Fermi level separation in the active region. We find that they behave qualitatively as expected for the chosen device structure. However, the results also exhibit waveoptical characteristics, as e.g. the propagating intensity depends non-monotonously on the propagation angle due to constructive and destructive interferences. Based on the results, the IRT model offers a promising way to self-consistently combine the modeling of photon and charge carrier dynamics, also fully accounting for all interference effects.