Infrared radiation of zinc selenide single crystals

Long-wave photoluminescence (PL) spectra of both as-grown and Au-doped n-ZnSe single crystals are studied in the temperature range from 81 to 300 K. A narrow band of infrared (IR) radiation centered at 878 nm (1.411 eV) manifests itself in the low-temperature PL spectrum. It is established that this band intensity first increases and then decreases with increasing concentration of doping impurity. With increasing excitation radiation intensity, spectral position of the IR PL band is unchanged and its intensity increases under the linear law. With increasing excitation radiation wavelength, the IR PL band intensity increases, it becomes narrower and shifts towards long wavelengths. It is shown that the observed IR radiation is caused by recombination of free electrons with holes localized on associative acceptors in the ZnSe:Zn:Au crystals or in the undoped crystals.