Electron and positron energy levels and deformation potentials in group-III nitrides

Electron and positron energy levels and deformation potentials are calculated in III-V bulk cubic nitrides using the pseudopotential formalism and the independent particle model. The calculated electron deformation potentials are found to be in reasonable agreement with the available data in the literature, whereas our obtained value for the positron deformation potential in BN disagrees with that calculated by other authors using ab initio methods. Furthermore, the positron affinity to different studied materials and heterostructures formed by these materials has been determined. This quantity is important to the understanding of positron trapping at interfaces and at precipitates. An attempt has been made to scale positron affinities and deformation potentials with the lattice constant. Such scaling is found to be not possible.