Fur type II InAs/GaSb superlattice (SL) structure, we reveal that, if the overall strain of the SLs is balanced to be zero, there exists a quantitative relationship between the interface (IF) materials and the SL constituent layers, which can serve as guidance on how to design the specific IF structure and on how to tune the strain. Controlled growth of a series of samples was performed to vary the strain by the IF engineering. It is found that while the photoluminescence (PL) peak position changes insignificantly with the changing strain, the PL intensity is intimately related to the strain. (C) 2014 Elsevier By. All rights reserved.