Raman scattering and room-temperature visible photoluminescence from Si nanocrystals embedded in SiO2 thin films

• Published in: Surface and interface analysis Vol. 28; no. 1; pp. 204 - 207
• Main Authors: Wang, Yinyue, Gong, Hengxiang, Yang, Yinhu, Guo, Yongping, Gan, Runjin
• Format: Journal Article Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 01.08.1999; Wiley
• Subjects: Clusters, nanoparticles, and nanocrystalline materials; Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Exact sciences and technology; Nanoscale materials: clusters, nanoparticles, nanotubes, and nanocrystals; nanosilicon (nc-Si); Optical properties and condensed-matter spectroscopy and other interactions of matter with particles and radiation; Optical properties of specific thin films; Optical properties of specific thin films, surfaces, and low-dimensional structures; Physics; r.f. co-sputtering technique; Raman scattering; Structure of solids and liquids; crystallography; visible room-temperature photoluminescence; Thin films; Electrical conductivity; Composite materials; Raman scattering; Photoluminescence; Experimental study; Thermal annealing; Nanocrystal; Sputtering
• ISSN: 0142-2421; 1096-9918
• DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1096-9918(199908)28:1<204::AID-SIA608>3.0.CO;2-O

Silicon nanocrystals (nc‐Si) embedded in SiO2 glassy mixture have been prepared on glass substrates and silicon and germanium wafers by r.f. co‐sputtering and post‐annealing in a vacuum. Using Raman spectrometry, photoluminescence and electrical conductivity measurements, we have investigated the structures and the optical properties of the Si/SiO2 composite films. The results show that Si nanocrystals could be formed in Si/SiO2 composite films by thermal annealing. The growth of nc‐Si is associated with annealing temperature and silicon content. As the size of nc‐Si reaches 5 nm, the intensity of photoluminescence at room temperature is at a maximum and the emitting photon energy is 2.15 eV. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.