Terahertz emission by InN

We report on optically excited terahertz (THz) emission by indium nitride (InN) thin films. We have used 70 fs titanium-sapphire laser pulses with wavelengths at 800 nm to generate THz-radiation pulses. The InN thin films are deposited on sapphire substrates with GaN buffer layer by molecular-beam epitaxy. The THz-radiation emitted from the InN surface is significantly stronger than that of the GaN/InN interface. The origin of the THz emission are transient photocarrier currents. These results are in agreement with recent experimental results of InN which show that this material is a small band-gap semiconductor. The magnitude of the THz emission from the InN is strong compared to THz emission from previously investigated semiconductors. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.