Porous Silicon as an Intermediate Buffer Layer for Zinc Oxide Nanorods

Zinc thin films were deposited onto porous silicon (PSi) substrates by dc sputtering using a Zn target. These films were then annealed under flowing (6 l/min) oxygen gas environment in the furnace at 600°C for 2 h. Porous silicon is used as an intermediate layer between silicon and ZnO films and it provides a large area composed of an array of voids. The PSi samples were prepared using photoelectrochemical method on n-type silicon wafer with (111) and (100) orientation. To prepare porous structures, the samples were dipped into a mixture of HF:ethanol (1:1) for 5 min with current densities of 50 mA/cm², and subjected to external illumination with a 500 W UV lamp. The surface morphology and the nanorod structure of the ZnO films were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). We synthesized the ZnO nanorods with diameter of 80–100 nm without any catalysts or templates. The XRD pattern confirmed that the ZnO nanorods were of polycrystalline structure. The surface-related optical properties have been investigated by photoluminescence (PL) and Raman measurements at room temperature. Micro-Raman results showed that A₁(LO) of hexagonal ZnO/Si(111) and ZnO/Si(100) have been observed at 522 cm^–1 and 530 cm^–1, respectively. PL spectra peaks are clearly visible at 366 cm^–1 and 368 cm^–1 for ZnO film grown on porous Si(111) and Si(100) substrates, respectively. The PL spectral peak position in ZnO nanorods on porous silicon is blue-shifted with respect to that in unstrained ZnO (381 nm).     

Nanocrystalline ZnO Film Grown on Porous SnO2/Si(111) Substrate

Porous tin oxide was prepared on silicon(111) substrate by the sol–gel route. Then, the samples were dried in air at 600°C for 30 min in an electric furnace. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images indicated the high density of the pores. Circular microvoids formed by the rigid shaped microarray network of 200–300 nm sizes are clearly seen in the plan view SEM image. The high homogeneity and uniformity of the porous region could also be visualized by this easy method. Nanocrystalline zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films have been deposited onto porous SnO₂substrates at high growth rates by radio frequency (RF) sputtering using a ZnO target. The surface morphology of the nanocrystalline ZnO films was characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM). Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy is a powerful, contactless and excellent nondestructive optical tool to study the acceptor binding energy of ZnO nanostructures. The PL measurements were also operated at room temperature. The peak luminescence energy in nanocrystalline ZnO on porous SnO₂ is blue-shifted with regard to that in bulk ZnO (381 nm). PL spectra peaks are distinctly apparent at 375 nm for ZnO film grown on porous SnO₂/Si(111) substrates.     

An investigation of natural oxidation process on stain-etched nanoporous silicon by micro-Raman spectroscopy

Micro-Raman spectra of porous silicon (PS) samples as-formed, from stain etching process using heavily doped silicon wafers, and after 750 days storage in air were analyzed around Si peak (300-600 cm⁻¹) and at photoluminescence (PL) range (300-8000 cm⁻¹). The first-order Raman spectra in the vicinity of Si peak were fitted from phonon confinement model including a term taking into account the amorphous phase. This analysis allowed the determination of the correlation length, which corresponds to the crystallite size, also considering the PS natural oxidation process. The photoluminescence band, generated by Si crystallites located on the outermost part of the PS layer, was also fitted with a Gaussian distribution. In order to investigate the porous silicon nanostructure, the micro-Raman spectra were measured for different sets of porous silicon samples. These spectra showed good reproducibility and the effects of the natural oxidation at different periods. A slight decrease in the crystallite size was observed for all samples sets studied, while the spectral part related to the amorphous phase did not describe significant changes. The central position of PL band, analyzed after the oxidation process, exhibited consistently a shift to higher energies. In addition, top view high resolution scanning electron microscopy (HRSEM) images also confirmed a reasonable reproducibility and homogeneity. The results showed that after storing in air, natural oxidation can modify the Si crystallites size at the surface but not increase the amorphous phase.     

Influence of sputter-etching of substrate on the microstructural and optical properties of ZnO films deposited by RF magnetron sputtering

ZnO films were prepared using radio frequency magnetron sputtering on Si(1 1 1) substrates that were sputter-etched for different times ranging from 10 to 30 min. As the sputter-etching time of the substrate increases, both the size of ZnO grains and the root-mean-square (RMS) roughness decrease while the thickness of the ZnO films shows no obvious change. Meanwhile, the crystallinity and c-axis orientation are improved by increasing the sputter-etching time of the substrate. The major peaks at 99 and 438 cm⁻¹ are observed in Raman spectra of all prepared films and are identified as E₂(low) and E₂(high) modes, respectively. The Raman peak at 583 cm⁻¹ appears only in the films whose substrates were sputter-etched for 20 min and is assigned to E₁(LO) mode. Typical ZnO infrared vibration peak located at 410 cm⁻¹ is found in all FTIR spectra and is attributed to E₁(TO) phonon mode. The shoulder at about 382 cm⁻¹ appearing in the films whose substrates were sputter-etched for shorter time (10-20 min) originates from A₁(TO) phonon mode. The results of photoluminescence (PL) spectra reveal that the optical band gap (Eg) of the ZnO films increases from 3.10 eV to 3.23 eV with the increase of the sputter-etching time of the substrate.     

Photoluminescence of nanostructured cubic-lattice silicon carbide films grown on a silicon wafer

The light-emitting properties of cubic-lattice silicon carbide SiC films grown on Si(100) and Si(111) substrates with VPE at low temperatures (T _gr ∼ 700°C) are discussed. Investigations of the grown films reveal a homogeneous nanocrystalline structure involving only the 3C-SiC phase. When the electron subsystem of the structure is excited by a He-Cd laser emitting at λ_exit = 325 nm, the photoluminescence (PL) spectra contain a rather strong emission band shifted by about 3 eV toward a short-wave spectral region. At low temperatures, the PL integral curve is split into a set of Lorentz components. The relation between these components and the peculiarities of the energy spectrum of electrons in the nanocrystalline grains of the silicon carbide layers is discussed.     

High sensitivity of palladium on porous silicon MSM photodetector

In this work, the nanocrystalline porous silicon (PS) is prepared through the simple electrochemical etching of n-type Si (1 0 0) under the illumination of a 100 W incandescent white light. SEM, AFM, Raman and PL have been used to characterize the morphological and optical properties of the PS. SEM shows uniformed circular pores with estimated sizes, which range between 100 and 500 nm. AFM shows an increase in its surface roughness (about 6 times compared to c-Si). Raman spectra of the PS show a stronger peak with FWHM=4.3 cm⁻¹ and slight blueshift of 0.5 cm⁻¹ compared to Si. The room temperature photoluminescence (PL) peak corresponding to red emission is observed at 639.5 nm, which is due to the nano-scaled size of silicon through the quantum confinement effect. The size of the Si nanostructures is estimated to be around 7.8 nm from a quantized state effective mass theory. Thermally untreated palladium (Pd) finger contact was deposited on the PS to form MSM photodetector. Pd/PS MSM photodetector shows lower dark (two orders of magnitude) and higher photocurrent compared to a conventional Si device. Interestingly, Pd/PS MSM photodetector exhibits 158 times higher gain compared to the conventional Si device at 2.5 V.     

气相输运法制备ZnO薄膜(英文)

运用气相输运技术在不同的衬底上制备ZnO薄膜,同时对这些ZnO薄膜的表面形貌、晶体结构和光学特性进行表征。在扫描电子显微镜图像上可以看到,相比没有镀金的Si衬底,ZnO纳米颗粒在镀金的Si衬底上的生长尺寸较大。X射线衍射测试结果表明,在Si(111)和Si(100)衬底上生长的ZnO薄膜显示出不同的六角纤锌矿结构的衍射峰,但没有出现立方闪锌矿ZnO结构的衍射峰。在镀金的Si衬底上,ZnO薄膜生长取向主要为c轴方向。此外,所有ZnO样品的光致发光谱上均只出现一个狭窄且强的紫外峰,约在389 nm(3.19 eV)波长处。     

Morphological and optical properties changes in nanocrystalline Si (nc-Si) deposited on porous aluminum nanostructures by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition for Solar energy applications

Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy was used to determine the electrical band gap of nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si) deposited by plasma enhancement chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) on porous alumina structure by fitting the experimental spectra using a model based on the quantum confinement of electrons in Si nanocrystallites having spherical and cylindrical forms. This model permits to correlate the PL spectra to the microstructure of the porous aluminum silicon layer (PASL) structure. The microstructure of aluminum surface layer and nc-Si films was systematically studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD). It was found that the structure of the nanocrystalline silicon layer (NSL) is dependent of the porosity (void) of the porous alumina layer (PAL) substrate. This structure was performed in two steps, namely the PAL substrate was prepared using sulfuric acid solution attack on an Al foil and then the silicon was deposited by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) on it. The optical constants (n and k as a function of wavelength) of the deposited films were obtained using variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) in the UV-vis-NIR regions. The SE spectrum of the porous aluminum silicon layer (PASL) was modeled as a mixture of void, crystalline silicon and aluminum using the Cauchy model approximation. The specific surface area (SSA) was estimated and was found to decrease linearly when porosity increases. Based on this full characterization, it is demonstrated that the optical characteristics of the films are directly correlated to their micro-structural properties.     

Improved performance of a crystalline silicon solar cell based on ZnO/PS anti-reflection coating layers

A porous silicon (PS) layer was prepared by photoelectrochemical etching (PECE), and a zinc oxide (ZnO) film was deposited on a PS layer using a radio frequency (RF) sputtering system. The surface morphology of the PS and ZnO/PS layers was characterised using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Nano-pores were produced in the PS layer with an average diameter of 5.7 nm, which increased the porosity to 91%. X-ray diffraction (XRD) of the ZnO/PS layers shows that the ZnO film is highly oriented along the c-axis perpendicular to the PS layer. The average crystallite size of the PS and ZnO/PS layers are 17.06 and 17.94 nm, respectively. The photoluminescence (PL) emission spectra of the ZnO/PS layers present three emission peaks, two peaks located at 387.5 and 605 nm due to the ZnO nanocrystalline film and a third located at 637.5 nm due to nanocrystalline PS. Raman measurements of the ZnO/PS layers were performed at room temperature (RT) and indicate that a high-quality ZnO nanocrystalline film was formed. Optical reflectance for all the layers was obtained using an optical reflectometer. The lowest effective reflectance was obtained for the ZnO/PS layers. The fabrication of crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar cells based on the ZnO/PS anti-reflection coating (ARC) layers was performed. The I–V characteristics of the solar cells were studied under 100 mW/cm² illumination conditions. The ZnO/PS layers were found to be an excellent ARC and to exhibit exceptional light-trapping at wavelengths ranging from 400 to 1000 nm, which led to a high efficiency of the c-Si solar cell of 18.15%. The ZnO/PS ARC layers enhance and increase the efficiency of the c-Si solar cell. In this paper, the fabrication processes of the c-Si solar cell with ZnO/PS ARC layers are an attractive and promising technique to produce high-efficiency and low-cost of c-Si solar cells.     

Cesium doped and undoped ZnO nanocrystalline thin films: a comparative study of structural and micro‐Raman investigation of optical phonons

Undoped and cesium‐doped zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films have been deposited on sapphire substrate (0001) using the sol–gel method. Films were preheated at 300 °C for 10 min and annealed at 600 and 800 °C for 1 h. The grown thin films were confirmed to be of wurtzite structure using X‐ray diffraction. Surface morphology of the films was analyzed using scanning electron microscopy. The photoluminescence (PL) spectra of ZnO showed a strong ultraviolet (UV) emission band located at 3.263 eV and a very weak visible emission associated with deep‐level defects. Cesium incorporation induced a blue shift of the optical band gap and quenching of the near‐band‐edge PL for nanocrystalline thin film at room temperatures because of the band‐filling effect of free carriers. A shift of about 10–15 cm⁻¹ is observed for the first‐order longitudinal‐optical (LO) phonon Raman peak of the nanocrystals when compared to the LO phonon peak of bulk ZnO. The UV resonant Raman excitation at RT shows multiphonon LO modes up to fifth order. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Nanocrystalline ZnO film deposited by ultrasonic spray on textured silicon substrate as an anti-reflection coating layer

A ZnO thin film was successfully synthesized on glass, flat surface and textured silicon substrates by chemical spray deposition. The textured silicon substrate was carried out using two solutions (NaOH/IPA and Na₂CO₃). Textured with Na₂CO₃ solution, the sample surface exhibits uniform pyramids with an average height of 5 μm. The properties and morphology of ZnO films were investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra revealed a preferred orientation of the ZnO nanocrystalline film along the c-axis where the low value of the tensile strain 0.26% was obtained. SEM images show that all films display a granular, polycrystalline morphology. The morphology of the ZnO layers depends dramatically on the substrate used and follows the contours of the pyramids on the substrate surface. The average reflectance of the textured surface was found to be around 13% and it decreases dramatically to 2.57% after deposition of a ZnO antireflection coating. FT-IR peaks arising from the bonding between Zn–O are clearly represented using a silicon textured surface. A very intense photoluminescence (PL) emission peak is observed for ZnO/textured Si, revealing the good quality of the layer. The PL peak at 380.5 nm (UV emission) and the high-intensity PL peak at 427.5 nm are observed and a high luminescence occurs when using a textured Si substrate.     

溶胶-凝胶法制备Li-N双掺p型ZnO薄膜的结构、光学和电学性能

采用溶胶-凝胶法在n型Si(100)衬底上沉积Li-N双掺杂ZnO薄膜,经X射线衍射和扫描电镜图片分析,所制备薄膜具有多晶纤锌矿结构和高的c轴择优取向.室温下霍尔效应测试结果显示Li-N双掺杂ZnO薄膜具有p型导电特性.在Li掺杂量为15.0at%,Li/N（摩尔比）为1∶1,700℃退火等优化条件下得到的最佳电学性能结果是：电阻率为0.34 Ω·cm,霍尔迁移率为16.43 cm²/V·s,载流子浓度为2.79×10¹⁹ cm^{-3关键词： Li-N双掺 p型ZnO薄膜 溶胶-凝胶 性能}     

生长温度对磁控溅射ZnO薄膜的结晶特性和光学性能的影响

采用反应射频磁控溅射方法，在Si (100) 基片上制备了具有高c轴择优取向的ZnO薄膜.利用 原子力显微镜、透射电子显微镜、X射线衍射分析、拉曼光谱等表征技术，研究了沉积温度 对ZnO薄膜的表面形貌、晶粒尺度、应力状态等结晶性能的影响；通过沉积温度对透射光谱 和光致荧光光谱的影响，探讨了ZnO薄膜的结晶特性与光学性能之间的关系.研究结果显示， 在室温至500℃的范围内，ZnO薄膜的晶粒尺寸随沉积温度的增加而增加，在沉积温度为500 ℃时达到最大；当沉积温度为750℃时，ZnO薄膜的晶粒尺度有所减小；在室温至750℃的范 围内，薄膜中ZnO晶粒与Si基体之间均存在着相对固定的外延关系；在沉积温度低于500℃时 ，制备的ZnO薄膜处于压应变状态，而750℃时沉积的薄膜表现为张应变状态.沉积温度的不 同导致ZnO薄膜的折射率、消光系数、光学禁带宽度以及光致荧光特性的变化，沉积温度对 紫外光致荧光特性起着决定性的作用.此外，探讨了影响薄膜近紫外光致荧光发射的可能因 素. 关键词： ZnO薄膜 表面形貌 微观结构 光学常数     

Fabrication of Cu2O nanocrystalline thin films photosensor prepared by RF sputtering technique

Cuprous oxide (Cu₂O) nanocrystalline thin films were prepared on two types of substrates known as crystalline silicon and amorphous glass, by radio frequency reactive magnetron sputtering method. Scanning electron microscopy images confirmed that Cu₂O particles covered the entire surface of both substrates with smoothing distribution. The root mean square surface roughness for the prepared Cu₂O thin films on glass and Si (111) substrates is 4.16, and 3.36 nm, respectively. Meanwhile, X-ray diffraction results demonstrated that the two phases of Cu₂O and CuO were produced on Si (111) and glass substrates. The optical bandgap of Cu₂O thin films synthesised on glass substrate is 2.42 eV. Furthermore, the prepared Cu₂O nanocrystalline thin films have showed low reflectance value in the visible spectrum. Metal-Semiconductor-Metal photodetector based Cu₂O nanocrystalline thin films deposited onto Si (111) was fabricated using aluminium and platinum, with the current-voltage and photoresponse characteristic investigated under various applied bias voltages. The fabricated Metal-Semiconductor-Metal (M-S-M) photodetector had shown 126% sensitivity in the presence of 10 mW/cm² of 490 nm light with 1.0 V bias, displaying 90 and 100 ms response and recovery times, respectively. These findings have demonstrated the suitability of M-S-M Cu₂O photodetector as an affordable photosensor in the future.     

The comparison between CdS thin films grown on Si(111) substrate and quartz substrate by femtosecond pulsed laser deposition

Two kinds of cadmium sulfate (CdS) thin films have been grown at 600 °C onto Si(111) and quartz substrates using femtosecond pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The influence of substrates on the structural and optical properties of the CdS thin films grown by femtosecond pulsed laser deposition have been studied. The CdS thin films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), photoluminescence (PL) and Raman spectroscopy. Although CdS thin films deposited both on Si(111) and quartz substrates were polycrystalline and hexagonal as shown by the XRD , SEM and AFM results, the crystalline quality and optical properties were found to be different. The size of the grains for the CdS thin film grown on Si(111) substrate were observed to be larger than that of the CdS thin film grown on quartz substrate, and there is more microcrystalline perpendicularity of c-axis for the film deposited on the quartz substrate than that for the films deposited on the Si substrate. In addition, in the PL spectra, the excitonic peak is more intense and resolved for CdS film deposited on quartz than that for the CdS film deposited on Si(111) substrate. The LO and TO Raman peaks in the CdS films grown on Si(111) substrate and quartz substrate are different, which is due to higher stress and bigger grain size in the CdS film grown on Si(111) substrate, than that of the CdS film grown on the amorphous quartz substrate. All this suggests that the substrates have a significant effect on the structural and optical properties of thin CdS films. PACS 81.15.Fg; 81.05.Ea; 78.20.-e; 78.67.-n; 42.62.-b     

Vibrational spectroscopy of SiC thin films deposited by excimer laser ablation

A large number of thin SiC films, prepared at different conditions by KrF excimer laser ablation of solid SiC targets and deposition onto Si substrates (some onto quartz glass (QG) and yttrium-stabilized zirconia (YSZ)) were characterized by infrared and Raman spectroscopy. The films consisted of nano- and microcrystalline SiC and contained nanocrystalline carbon in the case of QG or YSZ substrates. Raman spectra of nanocrystalline SiC (grains <30 nm) reflect the phonon density-of-state function of SiC by broad scattering effects at 220–600 and 650–950 cm⁻¹. Medium-size crystallites are represented by a relatively narrow asymmetric band at 790 cm⁻¹ and crystallites >200 nm by an additional asymmetric band at 960 cm⁻¹. Small satellite bands at 760 and 940 cm⁻¹, attributed to SiC surface layers, were resolved in some well-ordered samples. Optical modelling was needed to interpret the IR spectra. SiC films could be represented by an effective medium model containing a SiC host phase and embedded particles with free charge carriers. The crystalline order of SiC films can be estimated from the parameters of the SiC oscillators. Received: 5 October 1998 / Accepted: 8 January 1999 / Published online: 5 May 1999     

Optical parameters in SnO2 nanocrystalline textured films grown on p-InSb (111) substrates

Spectroscopic ellipsometry and photoluminescence (PL) measurements on SnO₂ nanocrystalline textured films grown on p-InSb (111) substrates by using radio-frequency magnetron sputtering at low temperature were carried out to investigate the dependence of the optical parameters on the SnO₂ thin film thickness. As the SnO₂ film thickness increases, while the energy gap of the SnO₂ film decreases, its refractive index increases. The PL spectra show that the broad peaks corresponding to the donor-acceptor pair transitions are dominant and that the peak positions change with the SnO₂ film thickness. These results can help improve understanding for the application of SnO₂ nanocrystalline thin films grown on p-InSb (111) substrates in potential optoelectronic devices based on InSb substrates.     

Rapid thermal annealing effects on the structural and optical properties of Na–N codoped ZnO films

Polycrystalline ZnO thin films codoped with Na and N were obtained by chemical bath deposition. The structural characteristic and the optical properties of the rapid thermal annealed ZnO:(Na,N) films were investigated by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), Raman spectrum and room-temperature photoluminescence. After RTA treatment, the XRD spectra showed a continuous decrease of the full- width at half-maximum (FWHM) of the (0 0 2) diffraction peak of the ZnO:(Na,N) film. The Raman spectra revealed that the intensity of the mode around 582 cm⁻¹ increased with the increase of the RTA temperature. The PL spectra showed different trends in the UV luminescence of ZnO:(Na,N) films after RTA treatments.     

Origin of the Raman mode at 379 cm−1 observed in ZnO thin films grown on sapphire

In this work, we present a detailed Raman scattering study to clarify the origin of the mode at 379 cm⁻¹ which is observed in Raman spectra of the ZnO films grown on c‐sapphire substrates and generally attributed to the A₁‐transverse optical (A₁‐TO) mode of ZnO. The studied ZnO films were deposited by metal‐organic chemical vapor deposition on c‐sapphire and (0001) ZnO substrates. In the z(−,−)z̄ backscattering configuration, the A₁‐TO mode is forbidden, while the 379 cm⁻¹ peak is still observed in the as‐deposited film grown on sapphire substrate. However, this mode is not observed in Raman spectra of the as deposited film grown on ZnO substrate. We suggest that the peak at 379 cm⁻¹ is the E_1g mode of the sapphire substrate which is allowed in z(−,−)z̄ backscattering configuration. The effects of annealing, the substrate and the collection cross‐section on Raman active modes were analyzed. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of irradiating ion fluence on optical properties of ZnO1−x:Nx thin films

Swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation is an effective technique to modify the optical properties of the materials. In the present investigation, the effect of 100?MeV?Ag⁷⁺ SHI irradiation fluence on the optical properties of ZnO_1?x:N_x thin films was studied. The post irradiation spectroscopic characterizations such as UV–VIS reflectance spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy analysis were carried out. The studies imply that when the SHI passes through the solid, the higher electronic stopping power of ions can weaken oxygen bonds in ZnO, resulting in the formation of donor defects such as oxygen vacancies and zinc interstitials. The formation of donor defects has been acknowledged through the increase in bandgap with irradiating ion fluence. The blue shift observed from the Raman spectra for the 3?×?10¹³ ions/cm² fluence-irradiated films implies the existence of compressive stress in the films. The PL analysis acknowledges the formation of donor defects upon irradiation. Furthermore, it conveys that the presence of N atoms in ZnO lattice leads to the formation of a less number of defects as compared with undoped ZnO while irradiation.