Hydrodynamic model for relaxation of optically injected currents in quantum wells

Abstract

We use a hydrodynamic model to describe the relaxation of optically injected currents in quantum wells on a picosecond time scale, numerically solving the continuity and velocity evolution equations with the Hermite-Gaussian functions employed as a basis. The interplay of the long-range Coulomb forces and nonlinearity in the equations of motion leads to rather complex patterns of the calculated charge and current densities. We find that the time dependence of even the first moment of the electron density is sensitive to this complex evolution.