Coupled carrier–phonon nonequilibrium dynamics in terahertz quantum cascade lasers: a Monte Carlo analysis

The operation of state-of-the-art optoelectronic quantum devices may be significantly affected by the presence of a nonequilibrium quasiparticle population to which the carrier subsystem is unavoidably coupled. This situation is particularly evident in new-generation semiconductor-heterostructure-based quantum emitters, operating both in the mid-infrared as well as in the terahertz (THz) region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In this paper, we present a Monte Carlo-based global kinetic approach, suitable for the investigation of a combined carrier–phonon nonequilibrium dynamics in realistic devices, and discuss its application with a prototypical resonant-phonon THz emitting quantum cascade laser design.