Influence of random alloy fluctuations on the electronic properties of axial InxGa1–xN/GaN nanowire heterostructures

Compound semiconductor heterostructures such as quantum dots, nanowires, or thin films, are commonly subject to randomly fluctuating alloy compositions if they contain ternary and quaternary alloys. These effects are obviously of an atomistic nature and thus rarely considered in heterostructure designs that require simulations on a continuum level for theory-guided design or interpretation of observations. In the following, we present a systematic approach to the treatment of alloy fluctuations in (In,Ga)N/GaN thin films and axial nanowire heterostructures. We demonstrate to what extent random alloy fluctuations can be treated in a continuum picture and discuss the impact of alloy fluctuations on the electronic properties of planar and nano wire-based (In,Ga)N/GaN heterostructures.