Systematic studies of Ge quantum dots (QDs) grown on strained Si0.3Ge0.7 layer have been carried out by photoluminescence (PL) and deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS). In PL measurements, two peaks around 0.7 eV are distinguished, which are assigned to two types of QDs observed by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Large blueshifts of the PL peaks from small QDs with the increase of excitation power are observed and attributed to the band bending effects typical for type-II band alignment. From DLTS measurements, the energy levels of holes in both types of QDs are derived, which shift with the change of the number of holes in QDs due to their charge energy. By comparing results from PL and DLTS measurements, further understanding of band alignment with the increase of the number of excitons in QDs is deduced. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.