Influence of annealing on microstructure and magnetic-transport of FeCo–SiO2 nanogranular films

A series of FeCo–SiO₂ nanogranular films were prepared using magnetron controlled sputtering method. The microstructure, tunneling giant magnetoresistance (TMR) and magnetic properties of FeCo–SiO₂ films deposited at room temperature and then annealed at various temperatures were investigated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), conventional four probes method and vibrated sample magnetometer (VSM) under room temperature, respectively. The results showed that all FeCo–SiO₂ films consisted of FeCo granules with equiaxial shape uniformly dispersed in the SiO₂ matrix and formed body-centered cubic (bcc) structure. With increasing the annealing temperature, FeCo granule size increased monotonically. For film with 30.5 vol% FeCo, the size distribution satisfied the log-normal function at lower annealing temperature. While with increasing annealing temperature, the size distribution deviated gradually from the log-normal function. Meanwhile, upon varying the annealing temperature, the TMR of films with lower volume fraction reached a peak value at higher annealing temperature and the TMR of films with higher volume fraction reached a peak value at lower annealing temperature. In addition, the results also indicated that the sensitivity of TMR changed non-monotonically with the increment of the annealing temperature and both the saturation magnetization and the susceptibility of FeCo (30.5 vol%)–SiO₂ films increased with increasing the annealing temperature.     

Dependence of photoluminescence from a-Si nanoparticles on the annealing time and exciting wavelength

Thin films of SiO_x having thickness of 0.2 μm and oxygen content x=1.5 or 1.7 are prepared by thermal evaporation of SiO in vacuum. Then some samples are furnace annealed for various times (in the range ) at 770 and 970 K and some others are rapid thermal annealed at 970 K for 30 and 60 s. Photoluminescence (PL) measurements are carried out at room temperature using the 442 nm line of a He-Cd laser and the 488 nm of an Ar laser for excitation. The effect of the annealing conditions and wavelength of the exciting light on the shape of the PL from these films is explored. The deconvolution of the PL spectra measured with the 442 nm line from samples annealed at 770 K for reveals two distinct PL bands peaked at around 2.3 and 2.5 eV, which do not shift appreciably with increasing annealing time. In addition, at longer annealing times, a weak third band is resolved centred in the range 2.0-2.1 eV. It exists in the spectra of all samples annealed at 970 K being more prominent in the samples with x=1.5. The intensity of this band shows different dependences on the annealing time in the films with different initial composition. The results obtained are discussed in terms of radiative recombination via defect states in the SiO_x matrix (the 2.5 eV band) or at the a-Si-SiO_x interface (the 2.3 eV band). The band centred in the 2.0-2.1 eV range is related to recombination in amorphous silicon nanoparticles grown upon annealing.     

Correlation between optical properties and Si nanocrystal formation of Si-rich Si oxide films prepared by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition

We have investigated the phase separation and silicon nanocrystal (Si NC) formation in correlation with the optical properties of Si suboxide (SiO_x, 0 < x < 2) films by thermal annealing in high vacuum. The SiO_x films were deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition at different nitrous oxide/silane (N₂O/SiH₄) flow ratios. The as-deposited films show increased Si concentration with decreasing N₂O/SiH₄ flow ratio, while the deposition rate and surface roughness have strong correlations with the flow ratio in the N₂O/SiH₄ reaction. After thermal annealing at temperatures above 1000 °C, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy manifest the progressive phase separation and continuous growth of crystalline-Si (c-Si) NCs in the SiO_x films with increasing annealing temperature. We observe a transition from multiple-peak to single peak of the strong red-range photoluminescence (PL) with increasing Si concentration and annealing temperature. The appearance of the single peak in the PL is closely related to the c-Si NC formation. The PL also redshifts from ∼1.9 to 1.4 eV with increasing Si concentration and annealing temperature (i.e., increasing NC size). The good agreements of the PL evolution with NC formation and the PL peak energy with NC size distribution support the quantum confinement model.     

Visible photoluminescence from Ge+-implanted SiO2 films thermally grown on crystalline Si

+ -implanted SiO₂ films is studied as a function of different fabricating conditions (implantation dose, annealing temperature and time). The SiO₂ films containing Ge nanocrystals exhibit two photoluminescence (PL) bands peaked at 600 nm and 780 nm. There are two excitation bands in the PL excitation (PLE) spectra. With variation in Ge nanocrystal size, the PL and PLE peak energies show no appreciable shift. The PL and PLE spectral analyses suggest that during the PL process, electron–hole pairs are generated by the E(l) and E(2) direct transitions inside Ge nanocrystals, which then radiatively recombine via luminescent centers in the matrix or at the interface between the nanocrystal/matrix. Received: 27 January 1998/Accepted: 18 March 1998     

Room temperature photoluminescence from amorphous silicon nanoparticles in SiOx thin films

Amorphous SiO_x thin films with four different oxygen contents (x=1.15, 1.4, 1.5, and 1.7) have been prepared by thermal evaporation of SiO in vacuum and then annealed at 770 or 970 K in argon for various times ?40 min. The influence of annealing conditions and the initial film composition on photoluminescence (PL) from the annealed films has been explored. Intense room temperature PL has been observed from films with x?1.5, visible with a naked eye. It has been shown that PL spectra of most samples consists of two main bands: (i) a ‘green’ band centered at about 2.3 eV, whose position does not change with annealing conditions and (ii) an ‘orange-red’ band whose maximum moves from 2.1 to 1.7 eV with increasing annealing time and temperature and decreasing initial oxygen content. These observations have been explained assuming recombination via defect states in the SiO_x matrix for the first band and emission from amorphous Si nanoparticles for the second one.     

Study on morphology and photoluminescence of Au/SiO2 nanocomposite films

Au/SiO₂ nanocomposite films were fabricated on Si (111) substrates by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering technique and annealing at different temperature for 20 min (mode A) and at 1000 °C for different annealing time (mode B). The nanocomposite films were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and photoluminescence (PL). SEM results demonstrate that the size of Au crystallites in mode A first increases and then decreases, on increasing annealing temperature, according to the results of XRD spectra. Analysis of PL spectra in mode B shows that the intensity of the emission peak at 440 nm and 523 nm early increases and late decreases, with increasing annealing time at 1000 °C. The origin of the emission peak at around 440 nm was related to the size and quantity of Au particles and one of the emission peak at around 523 nm was related to the nanostructure of films in agreement with SEM imagines. Experimental results indicated that morphology, microstructure and luminescence of Au/SiO₂ nanocomposite films showed close affinity with annealing temperature and annealing time.     

Strong ultraviolet and violet photoluminescence from Si-based anodic porous alumina films

We have investigated photoluminescence (PL) from Si-based anodic porous alumina films formed by real-time controlled anodization of electron-beam evaporated Al films. As-anodized samples show three strong PL bands at 295, 340, and 395 nm. These bands blueshift and their intensities decrease after the samples are annealed. When the annealing temperature increases to 1000 °C, the blueshift becomes specially pronounced and meanwhile the structures of the films develop toward crystalline Al₂O₃. Based on discussions on the thermal annealing behaviors of the PL and PL excitation spectra, we suggest that optical transitions in oxygen-related defects, F⁺ (oxygen vacancy with one electron) centers, are responsible for the observed ultraviolet and violet PL. Received: 24 July 2000 / Accepted: 24 February 2001 / Published online: 3 May 2001     

掺饵氢化非晶氧化硅1.54μm发光性质的研究

采用等离子体增强化学汽相沉积技术生长不同氧含量的氢化非晶氧化硅薄膜(a-SiO_{x∶H),离子注入铒及退火后在室温观察到很强的光致发光.当材料中氧硅含量比约为1和 1.76时,分别对应77Ｋ和室温测量时最强的1.54μm光致发光.从15到250Ｋ的变温实验显示 出三个不同的强度与温度变化关系,表明氢化非晶氧化硅中铒离子的能量激发和发光是一个 复杂的过程.提出氢化非晶氧化硅薄膜中发光铒离子来自于富氧区,并对实验现象进行了解 释.氢化非晶氧化硅中铒发光的温度淬灭效应很弱.从15到250Ｋ,光致发光强度减弱约1/2. 关键词： 铒 光致发光 氧含量}     

Temperature behaviour of optical properties of Si+-implanted SiO2

Silicon nanocrystals were prepared by Si⁺-ion implantation and subsequent annealing of SiO₂ films thermally grown on a c-Si wafer. Different implantation energies (20-150 keV) and doses - cm ^-2 ) were used in order to achieve flat implantation profiles (through the thickness of about 100 nm) with a peak concentration of Si atoms of 5, 7, 10 and 15 atomic%. The presence of Si nanocrystals was verified by transmission electron microscopy. The samples exhibit strong visible/IR photoluminescence (PL) with decay time of the order of tens of μs at room temperature. The changes of PL in the range 70-300 K can be well explained by the exciton singlet-triplet splitting model. We show that all PL characteristics (efficiency, dynamics, temperature dependence, excitation spectra) of our Si⁺-implanted SiO₂ films bear close resemblance to those of a light-emitting porous Si and therefore we suppose similar PL origin in both materials. Received 1st September 1998 and Received in final form 7 September 1999     

发光纳米硅/二氧化硅多层膜的特性与氢气氛退火的影响

利用等离子体增强化学气相沉积法制备了氢化非晶硅/二氧化硅多层膜，通过两步热退火的方法获得了尺寸可控的纳米硅/二氧化硅多层结构，晶粒尺寸约为4nm，在室温下观察到了较强的光致可见发光，其发光峰位于750nm.在此基础上，发现合适的氢气氛退火能有效地提高材料的发光强度.电子顺磁共振实验表明氢气氛退火有效地降低了纳米硅中的非辐射复合中心而导致发光效率的提高.     

Effects of thermal oxidation on the photoluminescence properties of porous silicon

The effects of thermal oxidation on the photoluminescence (PL) properties of powdered porous silicon (PSi) are studied using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). It is found that the PL intensity is steeply quenched after annealing at and recovered at above . The XPS intensity of oxides formed on the PSi surface is also found to strongly depend on the annealing temperature. The comparison between the annealing temperature dependence of PL intensity and that of the oxide XPS intensity suggests that the formation of thin disordered SiO₂ layer accompanies the quenching of the PL intensity, and that the formation of thick high-quality SiO₂ layer results in the PL intensity recovery. These results indicate that the thickness and quality of SiO₂ layer play a crucial role in the PL properties of thermally oxidized PSi.     

Effects of hydrogen plasma annealing on the luminescence from a-Si:H/SiO2 and nc-Si/SiO2 multilayers

Effects of post-hydrogen plasma annealing (HPA) on a-Si:H/SiO₂ and nc-Si/SiO₂ multilayers have been investigated and compared. It is found that photoluminescence (PL) from hydrogen-passivated samples was improved due to the reduction of non-radiative recombination defects. Some interesting difference is that during HPA, atomic hydrogen can directly passivate defects of a-Si:H/SiO₂, which results in the reappearance of luminescence band at 760 nm, while for nc-Si/SiO₂, hydrogen passivation requires additional thermal annealing after nc-Si/SiO₂ multilayer was treated by HPA. It is indicated that higher atomic mobility is needed to passivate defects at nc-Si/SiO₂ interface compared with a-Si:H/SiO₂ interface.     

Optical excitation and emission processes of Si-QD/SiO2 multilayer films with different SiO2 layer thicknesses

Si-rich oxide/SiO₂ multilayer films with different SiO₂ layer thicknesses have been deposited by the plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique, and crystallized Si quantum dot (Si-QD)/SiO₂ multilayer films are obtained after annealing at 1100 ^°C. The photoluminescence (PL) intensity of the multilayer films increases significantly with increasing SiO₂ layer thickness, and the PL peak shifts from 1.25 eV to 1.34 eV. The PL excitation spectra indicate that the maximal PL excitation intensity is located at 4.1 eV, and an excitation–transfer mechanism exists in the excitation processes. The PL decay time for a certain wavelength is a constant when the SiO₂ thickness is larger than 2 nm, and a slow PL decay process is obtained when the SiO₂ layer is 1 nm. In addition, the PL peak shifts toward high energy with decreasing temperature only when the SiO₂ layer is thick enough. Detailed analyses show that the mechanism of PL changes from the quantum confinement effect to interface defects with decreasing SiO₂ layer thickness.     

Texture control and its impact on the properties of SrBi2Ta2O9 thin films prepared by pulsed laser deposition

SrBi₂Ta₂O₉ (SBT) ferroelectric thin films with different preferred orientations were deposited by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). Several methods have been developed to control the preferred orientation of SBT thin films. For SBT films deposited directly on Pt/TiO₂/SiO₂/Si substrates and in situ crystallized at the deposition temperature, the substrate temperature has a significant impact on the orientation and the remnant polarization (Pr) of the films; a higher substrate temperature benefits the formation of (115) texture and larger grain size. The films deposited on Pt/TiO₂/SiO₂/Si substrates at 830 °C are (115)-oriented and exhibit 2Pr of 6 μC/cm². (115)- and (200)-predominant films can be formed by using a La_0.85Sr_0.15CoO₃ (LSCO) buffer layer or by annealing amorphous SBT films deposited on Pt/TiO₂/SiO₂/Si substrates at 450 °C using rapid thermal annealing (RTA). These films exhibit good electric properties; 2Pr of the films are up to 12 μC/cm² and 17 μC/cm², respectively. The much larger 2Pr of the films deposited on the LSCO buffer layer and of the films obtained by RTA than 2Pr of the films deposited on Pt/TiO₂/SiO₂/Si substrates at 830 °C is attributed to a stronger (200) texture. Received: 30 January 2001 / Accepted: 30 May 2001 / Published online: 25 July 2001     

The effects of ambient oxygen pressure on the 1.54 μm photoluminescence of Er-doped silicon-rich silicon oxide films grown by laser ablation of a Si+Er target

We fabricated Er-doped silicon-rich silicon oxide (SRSO:Er) films by pulsed laser deposition. A Si+Er target consisting of an Er metallic strip and a silicon disk was adopted with a goal to achieve a convenient control of the Er and oxygen density in the film. We found that the photoluminescence (PL) at 1.54 m is highly dependent on the ambient oxygen pressure, which determines the relative ratio of Si-Si, SiO_x, and SiO₂ phase in the film. The PL intensity increased drastically with increase in the annealing temperature and reached the maximum intensity at 500 °C. PACS 81.15.Fg; 81.07.-b     

镶嵌在氧化硅薄膜中纳米晶硅的可见光荧光谱与发光机制的研究

采用对非晶氧化硅薄膜退火处理方法，获得纳米晶硅与氧化硅的镶嵌结构．室温下观察到峰位为2.40eV光致发光．系统地研究了不同退火温度对薄膜的Raman谱、光荧光谱及光电子谱的影响．结果表明，荧光谱可分成两个不随温度变化的峰位为1.86和2.30eV的发光带．Si2p能级光电子谱表明与发光强度一样Si⁴⁺强度随退火温度增加而增加．Si平均晶粒大小为4.1—8.0nm，不能用量子限制模型解释蓝绿光的发射．纳米晶硅与SiO₂界面或SiO₂中与氧有关的缺陷可能是蓝绿光发射的主要原因 关键词：     

Laser–MBE growth of high-quality ZnO thin films on Al2O3(0001) and SiO2/Si(100) using the third harmonics of a Nd:YAG laser

High-quality ZnO thin films were grown on single-crystalline Al₂O₃(0001) and amorphous SiO₂/Si(100) substrates at 400–640 °C using laser molecular beam epitaxy. For film growth, the third harmonics of a pulsed Nd:YAG laser were illuminated on a ZnO target. The ZnO films were epitaxially grown on Al₂O₃(0001) with the narrow X-ray diffraction full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 0.04° and the films on SiO₂/Si(100) exhibited a preferred c-axis orientation. Furthermore, the films exhibited excellent optical properties in photoluminescence (PL) measurements with very sharp excitonic and weak deep-level emission peaks. At 15 K, PL FWHM values of the films grown on Al₂O₃(0001) and SiO₂/Si(100) were 3 and 18 meV, respectively. Received: 8 May 2001 / Accepted: 18 September 2001 / Published online: 20 December 2001     

InP/SiO2纳米复合膜的微观结构和光学性质

应用射频磁控共溅射方法在石英玻璃和抛光硅片上制备了InP/SiO₂复合薄膜,并在几种条件下对这些薄膜进行退火.X射线光电子能谱和卢瑟福背散射实验结果表明,复合薄膜中InP和SiO₂的化学组分都大体上符合化学计量配比.X射线衍射和激光喇曼谱实验结果都证实了复合薄膜中形成了InP纳米晶粒.磷气氛保护下的高温(520℃)退火可以消除复合薄膜中残存的In和In₂O₃并得到了纯InP/SiO₂纳米复合薄膜.实验观察到了室温下纳米复合薄膜的明显的光学吸收边蓝移现象和光学非线性的极大增强 关键词： InP 纳米晶粒 微观结构 光学性质     

Visible luminescence of Al2O3 nanoparticles embedded in silica glass host matrix

This paper deals with the sol-gel elaboration and defects photoluminescence (PL) examination of Al₂O₃ nanocrystallites (size ∼30 nm) confined in glass based on silica aerogel. Aluminium oxide aerogels were synthesized using esterification reaction for hydrolysis of the precursor and supercritical conditions of ethyl alcohol for drying. The obtained nanopowder was incorporated in SiO₂ host matrix. After heating under natural atmosphere at 1150 °C for 2 h, the composite Al₂O₃/SiO₂ (AS) exhibited a strong PL bands at 400-600 and 700-900 nm in 78-300 K temperature range. PL excitation (PLE) measurements show different origins of the emission. It was suggested that OH-related radiative centres and non-bridging oxygen hole centres (NBOHCs) were responsible for the bands at 400-600 and 700-900 nm, respectively.     

The influence of substrate on the properties of Er2O3 films grown by magnetron sputtering

The structural properties and the room temperature luminescence of Er₂O₃ thin films deposited by RF magnetron sputtering have been studied. Films characterized by good morphological properties have been obtained by using a SiO₂ interlayer between the film and the Si substrate. The evolution of the properties of the Er₂O₃ films due to rapid thermal annealing processes in O₂ ambient performed at temperatures in the range 800-1200 °C has been investigated in details. The existence of well-defined annealing conditions (temperature of 1100 °C or higher) allowing to avoid the occurrence of extensive chemical reactions with the oxidized substrate has been demonstrated and an increase of the photoluminescence (PL) intensity by about a factor of 40 with respect to the as deposited material has been observed. The enhanced efficiency of the photon emission process has been correlated with the longer lifetime of the PL signal. The same annealing processes are less effective when Er₂O₃ is deposited on Si. In this latter case interfacial reactions and pit formation occur, leading to a material characterized by stronger non-radiative phenomena that limit the PL efficiency.