The effect of electron‐hole plasmas on the density of states of silicon and GaAs

摘要

The densities of states of the conduction and valence bands of silicon and GaAs have been calculated at 300 K for the case of an electron‐hole plasma, which can occur at high‐injection levels in bipolar devices or in bulk material under intense optical excitation. The results show considerable narrowing of the band gap, which needs to be included in the analysis of device measurements or the interpretation of photoluminescence data. Furthermore, the band‐gap narrowing that results from dopant ions is reduced by excess carriers because of the reduced free‐carrier screening radius.