First-principles study of photoconductivity in BaTiO3 with oxygen vacancies

The photoconductivity of BaTiO_2.5 with oxygen vacancy has been studied by the linear muffin-tin orbital method in the atomic sphere approximation (LMTO-ASA). The ground-state structure of BaTiO_2.5 is obtained by minimization of the total energy. The partial densities of states show that the occupied states at the bottom of the conduction band have primarily Ti d orbital character. The photoconductivity shows that two novel features, in the low energy side, can be attributed to the intraband transition of free electronic carriers in the vicinity of the Fermi level and the interband transition of the Ti 3d(yz) related band states, to the Ti 3d(xy,xz) related band states, respectively. In addition, it is also found that the anisotropy of photoconductivity is enhanced because of the introduction of oxygen vacancy. The system can show the conductive behavior of electronic carriers, which is qualitatively in agreement with a recent experimental finding.     

Features of the electrical and photoelectrical properties of nanocrystalline indium and zinc oxide films

Electrical and photoelectrical properties of nanocrystalline zinc oxide and indium oxide films are studied. For these oxides the temperature dependences of conductance are observed to be consisting of two parts with different activation energy. Also photoconductivity relaxation of the oxides can be described by a sum of two exponential functions. The spectral dependencies of nanocrystalline zinc oxide and indium oxide photoconductivity are presented. The photoconductivity arises as samples are illuminated with energy less than band gap. The data are discussed on the basis of model by which the localized states in the band gap play major role.     

Negative photoconductivity of selectively doped SiGe/Si: B heterostructures with a two-dimensional hole gas in the middle-infrared range

The spectra of lateral photoconductivity in selectively doped SiGe/Si: B heterostructures with a two-dimensional hole gas are analyzed. It is revealed that the lateral photoconductivity spectra of these heterostructures exhibit two signals opposite in sign. The positive signal of the photoconductivity is associated with the impurity photoconductivity in silicon layers of the heterostructures. The negative signal of the photoconductivity is assigned to the transitions of holes from the SiGe quantum well to long-lived states in silicon barriers. The position of the negative photoconductivity signal depends on the composition of the quantum well, and the energy of the low-frequency edge of this signal is in close agreement with the calculated band offset between the quantum-confinement level of holes in the quantum well and the valence band edge in the barrier.     

Negative FIR-photoconductivity in n-GaAs

Negative photoconductivity in n-GaAs has been observed in the far infrared spectral range between 20 and 29 cm^–1. Negative photoconductivity occurs when a magnetic field is applied to the samples and impact ionization of shallow donors by the electric bias field is the dominant mechanism of electron excitation to the conduction band. A conceivable model qualitatively explaining the experimental results is proposed, which involves optical transitions from the lowest Landau subband to higher bound states of shallow donors.     

Trap statistics and the gap density of states in amorphous materials

We present a one-electron theory of non-equilibrium trap occupancy in amorphous materials, with simple results for electrons in states above the equilibrium Fermi level. The density of these states can then be obtained by analysis of transient photoconductivity. Specific values are given for a-Si: H samples for energies in the range 0.55–0.40 eV below the conduction band mobility edge. We conclude that the state density there can be low, as suggested by the results of deep level transient spectroscopy.     

Photoconductivity of Se85−xTe15Hgx thin films

The photoconductive properties such as dark conductivity, steady state and transient characteristics of a-Se_85−xTe₁₅Hg_x thin films, prepared by thermal vacuum evaporation technique have been studied in the temperature range 312–380 K. Analysis of data shows that the activation energy of dark current is greater as compared to the activation energy of photocurrent. The activation energy increases at higher concentration of Hg which shows that the defect density of states decreases. Analysis of intensity dependent photoconductivity shows that the bimolecular recombination is predominant. The transient photoconductivity shows that the carrier lifetime decreases with the increase in Hg concentration and increases at higher concentration of Hg. This decrease is due to the transition trapping process. Further the photosensitivity and carrier lifetime increases at higher concentration of Hg which also confirms that the density of defect states decreases.     

Photocarrier transport in 2D macroporous silicon structures

The mechanisms of photocarrier transport through a barrier in the surface space-charge region (SCR) of 2D macroporous silicon structures have been studied at photon energies comparable to that of the silicon indirect band-to-band transition. It was found that the photoconductivity relaxation time was determined by the light modulation of barrier on the macropore surface; as a result, the relaxation itself obeyed the logarithmic law. The temperature dependence of the photoconductivity relaxation time was determined by the thermionic emission mechanism of the current transport in the SCR at temperatures T > 180 K, and by the tunnel current flow at T < 100 K, with temperature-independent tunnelling probability. The photo-emf was found to become saturated or reverse its sign to negative at temperatures below 130 K because of light absorption due to optical transitions via surface electronic states close to the silicon conduction band. In this case, the surface band bending increases due to the growth of a negative charge of the semiconductor surface. The equilibrium electrons in the bulk and photoexcited holes on the macropore surface recombine through the channel of multistage tunnel recombination between the conduction and valence bands.     

Sc2O3电子结构和光学性质的第一性原理研究

本文基于第一性原理平面波赝势(PWP)和广义梯度近似(GGA)方法,研究了Sc2O3的电子结构、态密度和光学性质. 计算结果表明：Sc2O3是一种直接带隙半导体,其能带宽度为3.79eV,价带顶部主要由O的2p和Sc的3p3d杂化而成,导带主要由Sc的3d和O的2p构成. 同时,文中也分析了Sc2O3的介电函数、折射率、光电导率和吸收谱等光学性质. 计算得到静态介电常数 ,折射率n0=1.25,在紫外区有较大的吸收系数.     

Mn掺杂6H-SiC的第一性原理研究

本文通过密度泛函理论第一性原理平面波超软赝势计算方法计算了Mn掺杂6H-SiC的电子结构与光学性质。计算结果显示掺杂Mn后的6H-SiC为间接带隙p型半导体,且带隙较本征体有所降低,带隙由2.022 eV降为0.602 eV,电子从价带跃迁所需能量减少。掺杂后的Mn的3d能级在能带结构中以杂质能级出现,提高了载流子浓度,导电性增强。光学性质研究中,掺杂Mn后的介电函数虚部在低能处增加,电子激发态数量增多,跃迁概率增大。掺杂后的光吸收谱能量初值也较未掺杂的3.1 eV扩展到0 eV,反射谱发生红移。由于禁带宽度的降低使得光电导率起始范围得到扩展。     

Photoconductivity on europium oxyde single crystals and thin films

In this paper, results of photoconductivity measurements on four EuO samples are given. Low frequency photoconductivity versus temperature (10°K < T < 300°K) and magnetic field H is investigated for two wavelengths: 6600 Å and 9000 Å. The photoconductivity kinetic is also described, and is characterized by a distribution in decay times. Temperature, magnetic field and carrier concentration have small effects on this kinetic. Quenching effect is obtained by adding a continuous illumination (λ₂) to the weak modulated light (λ₁). The kinetic is strongly affected by quenching and becomes more simple. Quenching effect is maximum for the wavelength associated to the 4?⁷–4?⁶ 5d, transition. In contrast to the Penney-Kasuya[1] model we propose another one in which the conduction of equilibrium carriers as photo-excited carriers takes place in a broad band. The variation of low frequency photoconductivity versus temperature is attributed to the mobility variation. This variation agrees well with the model of mobility controlled by spin-disorder. The photoconductivity kinetic is interpreted by a three levels recombination model: the conduction band, the 4f levels and a distribution of trap levels. The lack of variation of photoconductivity decay in the range of metal-semiconductor transition is discussed.     

Impurity photoconductivity in strained <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-InGaAs/GaAsP heterostructures

The impurity-photoconductivity spectrum is observed for strained quantum wells of the p-InGaAs/GaAs solid solution at T= 4.2 K. In addition to the broad photoconductivity band attributed to the transitions from the acceptor ground state to the continuum of the first size-quantization subband, the spectrum exhibits a peak due to the transitions from the ground state to the excited localized acceptor state, a band corresponding to the transitions to the resonance states associated with the second heavy-hole size-quantization subband, and a narrow photoconductivity peak (Fano resonance) in the spectral range corresponding to the optical-phonon energy.     

Recombination centers in phosphorous doped hydrogenated amorphous silicon

Optical absorption below the mobility gap of a-SiH_x:P films is derived from photoconductivity measurements and interpreted in terms of optical transitions from occupied localized states in the exponential valence band tail and dangling bond states 0.8 eV above the valence band edge to unoccupied free electron conduction band states. Collection efficiency measurements of Schottky barrier structures indicate that P doping introduces centers with large capture cross-section for holes.     

硅中浅杂质的激光感应光电导谱

首次采用光子能量小于硅中浅受主杂质电离能的可调谐远红外激光器作为激发源,获得了硅中浅受主杂质的光电导谱.可调谐半导体远红外激光器的调谐范围为380～500cm~(-1),光子流密度约10~(18)/cm~2·sec,用双光子跃迁对光电导谱进行了解释.对于Si:Al样品,光电导谱中的双峰分别相应于2P~1和2P~2中间态的双光子共振跃迁.也观察到了双光子透明的反共振现象.     

Optical transitions of holes in uniaxially compressed germanium

Spontaneous emission and photoconductivity of germanium with gallium impurity are studied for determining the energy spectrum of hole states in this material in which radiation can be induced as a result of transitions of holes between these states. Holes were excited by electric field pulses with a strength up to 12 kV/cm at T = 4.2 K under uniaxial compression of samples up to 12 kbar. It has been found that hole emission spectra for transitions between resonant and local states of the impurity have a structure identical to the photoconductivity and absorption spectra. Transitions from resonance states, which are associated with the heavy hole subband, have not been detected. It has been found that in an electric field lower than 100 V/cm, a compressed crystal emits as a result of transitions of heavy holes. In a strong electric field (1–3 kV/cm), emission is observed in the energy range up to 140 meV, and transitions with emission of TA and LO phonons appear in such a field. The emission spectra under pressures of 0 and 12 kbar differ insignificantly. Hence, it follows that the contributions from heavy and light holes in a strong electric field are indistinguishable.     

Effects of the second and third neighbor hopping interactions on the electronic states of soliton in polyacetylene

We have studied the energy spectra and the electronic states of a soliton in the weakly coupled electron-phonon systems using an extension of SSH model that includes non-nearest neighbor hopping interactions. The results show that: (1) the electron-hole symmetry of the energy band structure implied by SSH model is broken, and the energy gap 2 increases. (2) for a negative charged soliton, only two bound states have been found, one of them is the midgap state, another is a new shallow state near the bottom of the conduction band; for a neutral soliton, all three bound states exist as in the SSH model, but their localizations are strengthened; for a positive charged soliton, four bound states have been found, one of which is an additional state near the top of the conduction band.     

Investigation of the Occupation Function of Localized States in Amorphous Semiconductors Under Infrared-Light Excitation

The occupation function of localized states in a-Si:H under i.r. light excitation is directly calculated from the observed infrared-stimulated photocurrent spectra. The calculated occupation function in dual-beam and one-beam excitation cases are compared. The overshot phenomenon in the dual-beam experiment is explained as the result of the difference of the initial condition between two cases when i.r. light is turned on. In the dual-beam excitation case, at the beginning, in the upper part of the band gap, there are many trapped electrons to be excited into the conduction band to cause the photoconductivity overshot.     

Ab-initio study of doped nanostructures—Mn-doped ultrathin ZnS films

An ab-initio study of the effects of the quantum confinement has been performed for the first time in the ultrathin ZnS films: unpassivated, passivated and the Mn-doped ones. A self-consistent full potential linear muffin tin orbital (FP-LMTO) method has been employed. The studied films have comparatively a large thickness range of 2.7–29.7 Å. The fundamental band gap increases exponentially with decrease in the size of the quantum confinement. The Mn-doped films reveal the localized impurity-induced states within the band gap and also in the conduction band region. The intense optical transitions between the Mn-induced states will appear at about 2.1 eV which is in excellent agreement with the observed peak in the photoluminescence experiments.     

Na掺杂反式聚乙炔中的孤子晶格的能谱与电子束缚态

从离散的ＳＳＨ模型出发，考虑了链内的电子相互作用，以及由杂质和周围链上的荷电孤子产生的库仑势的影响，探讨了各种掺杂浓度的反式聚乙炔中孤子晶格的能谱与电子束缚态。计算结果表明：在孤子晶格的能谱中，在价带底有两条定域能级，在导带顶存在着多个电子束缚态，随掺杂浓度的升高，束缚态的局域性减弱，禁带中的孤子能级形成孤子能带。当掺杂浓度高达１６．６７％时，所有的电子束缚态都消失，转变为扩展态。孤子晶格的禁带宽度随着掺杂浓度的增加而增大，最高占据态与导带底之间的能隙则随之逐渐减小。孤子能带底与价带顶之间的能隙在临界浓度附近有一极大值。还讨论了电子－电子相互作用对孤子晶格能谱的影响。 关键词：     

Anomalous Behaviour of Photorefractive Grating Erasure Owing to Existence of both Negative and Positive Carriers

In LiNbO3：Fe, anomalous behaviour of grating erasure is observed with different wavelengths, i.e. rapid grating erasure in the short wavelength range, which deviates from the results predicted by the electron transport band model. The deviation is related to the coexistence of electrons and holes in photorefraction, and charge-transfer process including electrons and hole has been proposed. The electron and hole contributions to photoconductivity have been identified by experiments. We also give the theoretical dependence of electron photo-excitation coefficient S of the Fe centre on the wavelength.     

Far-infrared spectroscopy of impurities in semiconductors

Far-infrared spectroscopy of the electronic transitions between bound states of impurities provides a very high resolution technique for studying chemical shifts and thereby identifying residual contaminants. The use of photoconductivity generated within the sample itself, usually by the photothermal mechanism (“photothermal ionisation spectroscopy”), enables very high sensitivity to be achieved even with very thin films or ultrahigh-purity material. The current knowledge about the identity of the residual shallow donors in GaAs, InP, InAs and InSb obtained with this technique is reviewed. With high-purity materials the magneto-optical spectrum of the shallow donors can be particularly rich and more than fifty lines can be observed with both GaAs and InP.

Hydrostatic pressure provides a valuable additional experimental parameter in studies of impurities. Not only does the pressure-induced increase in mass improve the resolution of the “fine structure” due to different chemical species but additional states can be introduced into the forbidden energy gap. Results with both InSb and GaAs have shown that generally donors in direct-gap III-V materials may be expected to have three types of state: the familiar gamma-associated donors, localised states with A₁ symmetry which are normally resonant within the conduction band and metastable DX states.

Negatively charged shallow donor states (D^- states) and “molecular” combinations where the electrons are shared between two or more donor sites have been studied by infrared spectroscopy of III-V materials. These states are important precursors of the metal-insulator transition.

Recently there have been a number of studies of impurities within quantum wells and heterostructures. The dependence of impurity energy on distance from the well edge has been established and it has been shown that high concentrations of D^- states can be formed by remote deping of the structures.