Infrared optical absorption of Hg1−xCdxTe

Abstract
The absorption near the fundamental absorption edge of Hg1−xCdxTe was measured over the composition range 0.205⩽x⩽0.220 at temperatures from 80 to 300 K. The dispersion of the index of refraction of Hg1−xCdxTe was obtained from the interference pattern. It was found that the absorption tail obeys a modified Urbach’s rule and is expressed by α=α0 exp[σ (EE0)/(T+T0)] for 20⩽α (cm−1) ⩽1000. The fitting parameters α0, σ, T0, and E0 vary regularly with x. The expression is used to obtain the absorption coefficient and the temperature coefficient of the gap as a function of x and T. Evidence is presented to show that these parameters may be extrapolated to calculate the absorption beyond the measured composition range.