Study of the local defect structure of CdTe-Ge crystals by microindentation

This paper demonstrates the effectiveness of the microindentation method as a way to monitor the quality of cadmium telluride crystals. Measurements of microhardness and the length of dislocation rays from the rosette around the indentation pit can clearly identify nonuniform distributions of structural defects, both along the direction of growth and along a diameter of a CdTe boule. The mobility of α dislocations is more sensitive to nonuniformities in the structure than the mobility of β dislocations and the microhardness. A qualitative correspondence is established between the microplasticity characteristics of CdTe:Ge and its germanium content: the hardness of the crystal is insensitive to changes in the Ge content in the range from 3×10¹⁶ to 1×10¹⁷ at/cm³, but increases sharply beginning at a concentration of ∼1×10¹⁷ at/cm³. The correlation between the value of the microhardness and the length of the dislocation rays from the rosette around the imprint of the indentor are analyzed. An estimate is obtained for the hardness of pure CdTe. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 40, 264–268 (February 1998)     

Lattice distortion (Peierls Transition) caused by spin interaction in the chaotic impurity system of a semiconductor

The effect of an elastic spontaneous distortion of the crystal lattice of a doped semiconductor Ge:As near the insulator–metal (IM) phase transition has been discovered. The effect is manifested in the electron spin resonance (ESR) of neutral As atoms as a splitting of the single resonance absorption line. It observed at electron concentrations in the range 0.8 < n/n_C < 1 at low temperatures T < 100 K (n_C = 3.7 × 10¹⁷ cm^‐3 is the critical electron concentration for the IM phase transition). The splitting is the strongest along each of the six [110] directions, which indicates that the local lattice distortion occurs just in these directions. As a result, a sample is possibly divided into separate domains differing in the directions of compressive or tensile deformations. A study of concentration, temperature, and angular dependences of the effect has shown that the phenomenon discovered can be understood in terms of the Peierls spin transition model.     

Direct calculation of transition intensities in LiYF<Subscript>4</Subscript>: Nd<Superscript>3+</Superscript>

Duan’s simple model is extended to analyze the mixing of the 4f ^{N − 1}5d configuration with the 4f ^N states. The explicit static coupling and traditional dynamic coupling are considered, and the parameters are fitted according to the absorption spectrum in LiYF₄: Nd³⁺. The parameter values obtained are as follows: T ₃₂ = −28i × 10⁻⁷, T ₅₂ = −1151i × 10⁻⁷, A ₃₂² = 192i × 10⁻¹² cm, A ₅₂⁴ = i × 10⁻¹² cm, A ₇₂⁶ = 54i × 10⁻¹² cm, and A ₇₆⁶ = −680i × 10⁻¹² cm. Compared to the experimental measurements, the present model yields better results than those obtained from the Judd-Ofelt theory. The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

Structure,thermal properties,conductivity and electrochemical stability of di-urethanesil hybrids doped with LiCF<Subscript>3</Subscript>SO<Subscript>3</Subscript>

Variable chain length di-urethane cross-linked poly(oxyethylene) (POE)/siloxane hybrid networks were prepared by application of a sol-gel strategy. These materials, designated as di-urethanesils (represented as d-Ut(Y′), where Y′ indicates the average molecular weight of the polymer segment), were doped with lithium triflate (LiCF₃SO₃). The two host hybrid matrices used, d-Ut(300) and d-Ut(600), incorporate POE chains with approximately 6 and 13 (OCH₂CH₂) repeat units, respectively. All the samples studied, with compositions ∞ > n ≥ 1 (where n is the molar ratio of (OCH₂CH₂) repeat units per Li⁺), are entirely amorphous. The di-urethanesils are thermally stable up to at least 200 °C. At room temperature the conductivity maxima of the d-Ut(300)- and d-Ut(600)-based di-urethanesil families are located at n = 1 (approximately 2.0 × 10⁻⁶ and 7.4 × 10⁻⁵ Scm⁻¹, respectively). At about 100 °C, both these samples also exhibit the highest conductivity of the two electrolyte systems (approximately 1.6 × 10⁻⁴ and 1.0 × 10⁻³ Scm⁻¹, respectively). The d-Ut(600)-based xerogel with n = 1 displays excellent redox stability.     

Calibration of the 67 keV mössbauer resonance of73Ge

Using the first-principles scalar-relativistic LMTO method, we have calculated the electronic structure of crystalline Ge and rutile-structured GeO₂. By comparing the calculated electron contact densities with experimental isomer shifts of the 67 keV transition of⁷³Ge in these materials, we obtain a value for the relative change in the nuclear radius of ΔR/R=(7.4±0.7)×10⁻⁴. The results of the present work are compared with previous attempts to calibrate this isomeric transition.     

Thermal and optical properties of Tm<Superscript>3+</Superscript>:NaLa(WO<Subscript>4</Subscript>)<Subscript>2</Subscript> crystal

A Tm³⁺-doped NaLa(WO₄)₂ single crystal with a dimension of Φ20 mm×40 mm was grown by the Czochralski method. Anisotropic thermal expansion coefficients of this crystal were investigated. Polarized absorption spectra, emission spectra and decay curve were recorded at room temperature. The absorption and emission cross-section were presented. Based on the Judd–Ofelt analysis, we obtained the three intensity parameters: Ω₂=10.21×10^-20, Ω₄=2.66×10^-20, and Ω₆=1.46×10^-20 cm². The radiative probabilities, radiative lifetimes, and branch ratios of Tm³⁺:NaLa(WO₄)₂ were calculated, too. Luminescence lifetime of the ³ H ₄ level was measured to be 220 μs. The stimulated emission cross-section for the ³ F ₄→³ H ₆ transition were determined using the reciprocity method, potential laser gain for this transition were also investigated, the gain curves implied that the tunable range is up to 200 nm. PACS 42.70.Hj; 78.20.-e     

Thermo-optic coefficients of monoclinic KLu(WO<Subscript>4</Subscript>)<Subscript>2</Subscript>

The three thermo-optic coefficients of the biaxial laser host KLu(WO₄)₂ are measured at 633 nm by a deflection method. Their values at 300 K amount to ∂ n _g /∂ T=−7.4×10⁻⁶ K⁻¹; ∂ n _m /∂ T=−1.6×10⁻⁶ K⁻¹ and ∂ n _p /∂ T=−10.8×10⁻⁶ K⁻¹. Nearly athermal propagation directions are found for polarizations along the N _m and N _p dielectric axes.     

Photoluminescence as a tool for the study of the electronic surface properties of gallium arsenide

Electronic surface parameters of GaAs have been determined from a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the relative photoluminescence intensity at 300 K. Characteristics of etched (100) surfaces ofn- andp-type liquid phase epitaxial GaAs have been found to be governed by negative surface charges. A density of charged surface states of about 10¹² cm⁻² and a band bending of 0.59 eV have been found forn-type material with an electron concentration of 1.1×10¹⁷ cm⁻³. Forp-type samples with hole densities ranging from 6×10¹⁵ to 4.3×10¹⁸ cm⁻³ the estimated density of negatively charged surface states was below 2×10¹¹ cm⁻², and the band bending was not more than a few kT.     

Equivalent circuit of silicon diodes subjected to high-fluence electron irradiation

Silicon diodes with a p ⁺-n junction made in a 48-μm-thick phosphorus-doped silicon epilayer (resistivity ρ = 30 Ω cm) grown on antimony-doped Si(111) wafers (ρ = 0.01 Ω cm) are studied. The diodes are irradiated by high-energy (3.5 MeV) electrons with fluences from 5 × 10¹⁵ to 2 × 10¹⁶ cm⁻². It is shown that the conventional equivalent circuit of the diode that consists of a parallel RC network and a series-connected resistor inadequately describes the dependence of the dielectric loss tanδ on variable current frequency f in the range 1 × 10²–3 × 10⁷ Hz. Another equivalent circuit is suggested that includes not only the capacitance and resistance of the n-base (the latter increases because radiation-induced defects are compensated for by shallow donors) but also the f dependence of the capacitance of the space-charge region, which is due to retarded charge exchange between deep-level radiation-induced defects.     

Static and dynamic structure factors with account of the ion structure for high-temperature alkali and alkaline earth plasmas*

The electron-electron, electron-ion, ion-ion and charge-charge static structure factors are calculated for alkali (at T = 30 000 K, 60 000 K, n _e = 0.7 × 10²¹ ÷ 1.1 × 10²² cm^-3) and Be²⁺ (at T = 20 eV, n _e = 2.5 × 10²³ cm^-3) plasmas using the method described by Gregori et al. The dynamic structure factors for alkali plasmas are calculated at T = 30 000 K, n _e = 1.74 × 10²⁰, 1.11 × 10²² cm^-3 using the method of moments developed by Adamjan et al. In both methods the screened Hellmann-Gurskii-Krasko potential, obtained on the basis of Bogolyubov's method, has been used taking into account not only the quantum-mechanical effects but also the repulsion due to the Pauli exclusion principle. The repulsive part of the Hellmann-Gurskii-Krasko (HGK) potential reflects important features of the ion structure. Our results on the static structure factors for Be²⁺ plasma deviate from the data obtained by Gregori et al., while our dynamic structure factors are in a reasonable agreement with those of Adamyan et al.: at higher values of k and with increasing k the curves damp down while at lower values of k, and especially at higher electron coupling, we observe sharp peaks also reported in the mentioned work. For lower electron coupling the dynamic structure factors of Li⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, Rb⁺ and Cs⁺ do not differ while at higher electron coupling these curves split. As the number of shell electrons increases from Li⁺ to Cs⁺ the curves shift in the direction of low absolute value of ω and their heights diminish. We conclude that the short range forces, which we take into account by means of the HGK model potential, which deviates from the Coulomb and Deutsch ones, influence the static and dynamic structure factors significantly.     

Nonlinear optical response of Ge nanocrystals in silica matrix with excitation of femtosecond pulses

We report an investigation of third-order optical nonlinearities in Ge nanocrystals (∼6 nm radius) embedded in silica matrix using the Z-scan and pump-probe techniques with femtosecond laser pulses at 780-nm wavelength. The nanocrystallite Ge samples were prepared using magnetron co-sputtering and post-thermal annealing at 800 °C. The nonlinear absorption coefficient and refractive index of the Ge nanocrystals were determined to be in the range from 1.8×10^-7 to 6.8×10^-7 cm/W and 1.5×10^-12 to 8.0×10^-12 cm²/W, respectively, which are proportional to the Ge atomic fraction in the matrix. Relaxation of the nonlinear response was found to have two characteristic time constants, 1.8 ps and 65 ps. The mechanisms responsible for the observed nonlinear response are discussed. Received: 21 August 2000 / Revised version: 17 January 2001 / Published online: 30 March 2001     

Magnetic-field-induced retardation of the recombination of nonequilibrium charge carriers in semiconductors

The retardation of the recombination of electrons and holes in semiconductors in an applied uniform magnetic field has been predicted. It has been shown that the recombination time in germanium in the temperature range of T = 1–10 K at charge carrier densities of n _e = 10¹⁰−10¹⁴ cm⁻³ in magnetic fields of B = 3 × 10²−3 × 10⁴ G can be more than two orders of magnitude larger than that at zero magnetic field. This means that, after creation of nonequilibrium charge carriers by their injection at the p-n junction owing to some radiation sources or fast electron irradiation, the semiconductor retains its conductivity for a much longer time at nonzero applied magnetic field. The effect under study can be used, for example, to detect radiation sources.     

Electrical properties of thermal donors formed in silicon under elastic tensile stress

The electrical properties of thermal donors formed in the bulk and near-surface regions in silicon samples with (3–9) × 10¹⁷ cm⁻³ oxygen concentrations under elastic tensile stress σ of about 1 GPa have been studied. The original method allowing us to control an introduced elastic tensile stress during the thermal donor’s formation at T = 450°C by a double-crystal X-ray diffractometer has been used. The formation of thermal donors in silicon with a high oxygen concentration of 9.3 × 10¹⁷ cm⁻³ under tensile stress has been found to be less effective than in silicon with a low oxygen concentration of (3–5) × 10¹⁷ cm⁻³. Single-charged donors are formed in silicon with a low oxygen concentration under tensile stress while double-charged donors are formed in silicon with a high oxygen concentration.     

Investigating the excitation of 8<Superscript>−</Superscript> isomers in the odd-odd nuclei of <Superscript>116–120</Superscript>Sb in the (<Emphasis Type="Italic">p,n</Emphasis>)-reaction

Isomeric cross-section ratios in ^116m,g Sb, ^118m,g Sb and ^120m,g Sb were measured in the (p, n)-reaction for an energy of protons of ∼6.7 MeV. Experimental values of σ ^m /σ ^g were obtained: (4.6 ± 0.4) × 10⁻⁴ for ¹¹⁶Sb, (5.4 ± 0.6) × 10⁻³ for ¹¹⁸Sb and (7.4 ± 0.7) × 10⁻³ for ¹²⁰Sb. Experimental values of the isomeric crosss-ection ratios are compared to the theoretical values calculated using the TALYS-1.0 code. The statistical nature of the (p, n) reaction is demonstrated in the excitation region of residual nuclei 0.8–3.5 MeV.     

Near-IR laser inelastic electronic light scattering spectroscopy on transitions between ground and excited states of acceptor centers in GaAs and InP crystals

We report the development of a method for recording the low-temperature (T=6 K) near-IR inelastic light scattering spectra and the observation of electronic scattering on the transitions 1s _3/2(Γ₈) → 2s _3/2(Γ₈) between the ground and excited states of different shallow acceptor centers in a n-type semi-insulating crystal si-GaAs (n=1.0 × 10⁸ cm⁻³) and in a doped p-InP crystal (p=3.6×10¹⁷ cm⁻³). Moreover, a new line, associated with the transition 1s _3/2(Γ ₈) → 2p _3/2(Γ₈) and due to a dielectric local mode, recorded for the first time in the spectra of narrow-gap semiconductors, was found in the residual-frequency band in the p-InP spectrum between TO(Γ) and LO (Γ) phonons. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 67, No. 5, 334–339 (10 March 1998)     

Spectroscopic properties of Nd<Superscript>3+</Superscript>:CaNb<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>6</Subscript> crystal

The absorption spectra, fluorescence spectrum and fluorescence decay curve of Nd³⁺ ions in CaNb₂O₆ crystal were measured at room temperature. The peak absorption cross section was calculated to be 6.202×10⁻²⁰ cm² with a broad FWHM of 7 nm at 808 nm for E//a light polarization. The spectroscopic parameters of Nd³⁺ ions in CaNb₂O₆ crystal have been investigated based on Judd-Ofelt theory. The parameters of the line strengths Ω _t are Ω ₂=5.321×10⁻²⁰ cm²,Ω ₄=1.734×10⁻²⁰ cm²,Ω ₆=2.889×10⁻²⁰ cm². The radiative lifetime, the fluorescence lifetime and the quantum efficiency are 167 μs, 152 μs and 91%, respectively. The fluorescence branch ratios are calculated to be β ₁=36.03%,β ₂=52.29%,β ₃=11.15%,β ₄=0.533%. The emission cross section at 1062 nm is 9.87×10⁻²⁰ cm².     

EHD-photoluminescence kinetics in doped Ge

Measurements of the LA-phonon assisted line kinetics of the EHD photoluminescence in As- and Sb-doped germanium with impurity concentrations n_D = 10¹⁵ ? 10¹⁷ cm^?3 are presented. These kinetics are found to be strongly dependent on the excitation level at 4.2 K. From the experimental results and a simplified kinetic equation the EHD “diffusion length” in Ge:As sample with n_D = 2 × 10¹⁶ cm^?3 is estimated to be L_D ? 0.34 mm which is consistent with previous results.     

Free carrier concentration and conductivity in chlorine doped lead telluride

Plasma resonance in the IR reflection spectra is used to measure the concentration and relaxation time of free charge carriers along with the conductivity in PbTe_{1 − x} Cl _x solid solutions. It is found that with increasing the chlorine concentration, the electron concentration and conductivity increase and reach saturation at x = 0.03 (n = 5.5 × 10¹⁹ cm⁻³, σ = 3750 Ohm⁻¹ · cm⁻¹). The relaxation time decreases with increasing the chlorine concentration and reaches the minimum value of 2.2 × 10⁻¹⁴ s at x = 0.03; then, it almost does not change.     

Laser induced breakdown spectroscopy of germane plasma induced by IR CO2 pulsed laser

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) in germane (GeH₄), initially at room temperature and pressures ranging from 2 to 10 kPa, was studied using a high-power transverse excitation atmospheric (TEA) CO₂ laser (λ=10.653 μm, τ _FWHM=64 ns and power densities ranging from 0.28 to 5.52 GW cm⁻²). The strong emission spectrum of the generated plasma is mainly due to electronic relaxation of excited Ge, H and ionic fragments Ge⁺, Ge²⁺ and Ge³⁺. The weak emission is due to molecular bands of H₂. Excitation temperatures of 8100±300 K and 23,500±2500 K were estimated by Ge atomic and Ge⁺ singly ionized lines, respectively. Electron number densities of the order of (0.7–6.2)×10¹⁷ cm⁻³ were deduced from the Stark broadening of several atomic Ge lines. The characteristics of the spectral emission intensities from different species have been investigated as functions of the germane pressure and laser irradiance. Optical breakdown threshold intensities in germane at 10.653 μm have been determined. The mechanism of initiation of the laser-induced plasma in germane has been analyzed.     

Blistering of rhenium irradiated with 21keV helium ions

This paper describes blistering of rhenium following 21 keV He⁺-ion irradiation at temperatures between 300 K and 1200 K. Blistering starts at 300 K at a dose of 3×10¹⁷ ions/cm². The most probable blister diameter varies from 4400 ? at 300 K to 10100 ? at 1200 K. The blister depth τ _bl , the blister diameter φ _bl and the blister heighth _bi show a distribution. From the observations one could derive the following relationships:h _bl = 0.35φ _bl ; τ _bl =3.43φ _bl ^2/3 . The erosion yieldE _y due to blistering is function of doseE _y =0.51 atoms/ion at 3×10¹⁷ ions/cm²,E _y =0.56 atoms/ion at 6×10¹⁷ ions/cm² andE _y =0.14 atoms/ion at 3×10¹⁸ ions/cm². The sputtering yieldS (21 keV) is estimated to be ∼0.1 atom/ion. The corresponding surface regression is 44? at 3×10¹⁷ ions/cm² and 1323 ? at 9×10¹⁸ ions/cm². Surface regression has therefore little influence on the observations at low doses. Work performed at the Mathematicals Science Department of S.C.K./C.E.N. at Mol (Belgium)