Using tunnel junctions to grow monolithically integrated optically pumped semipolar III-nitride yellow quantum wells on top of electrically injected blue quantum wells.

We report a device that monolithically integrates optically pumped (20-21) III-nitride quantum wells (QWs) with 560 nm emission on top of electrically injected QWs with 450 nm emission. The higher temperature growth of the blue light-emitting diode (LED) was performed first, which prevented thermal damage to the higher indium content InGaN of the optically pumped QWs. A tunnel junction (TJ) was incorporated between the optically pumped and electrically injected QWs; this TJ enabled current spreading in the buried LED. Metalorganic chemical vapor deposition enabled the growth of InGaN QWs with high radiative efficiency, while molecular beam epitaxy was leveraged to achieve activated buried p-type GaN and the TJ. This initial device exhibited dichromatic optically polarized emission with a polarization ratio of 0.28. Future improvements in spectral distribution should enable phosphor-free polarized white light emission.