Modelling amorphous silicon with hydrogenated defects: GW treatment of the ST12 phase

The ST12 phase of silicon is investigated as a possible model for amorphous silicon (a-Si). The structure is studied both with and without hydrogenated hole defects to model the properties of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) as well as a-Si. A density functional theory model of ST12 Si is structurally relaxed, and the radial correlation function and phonon density of states are used to compare the structural properties of the model to those of a-Si. One-shot GW self-energy corrections are used to generate the band structure, and the corrected electronic structure is found to reproduce the experimental energy gap of a-Si. Introducing hydrogenated defects to the ST12 structure leads to a slight decrease in the band gap and a shift in the density of states, as the breaking of symmetry results in band splitting. The dielectric functions are calculated for both a-Si and a-Si:H, using the GW corrected band structures, with a density functional perturbation theory approach. The model ST12 Si is found to absorb strongly at slightly lower energies than experimental a-Si, whereas the spectrum of the hydrogenated ST12 closely matches that of a-Si:H.     

Comparative investigation of unipolar resistance switching effect of Pt/Mg0.6Zn0.4O/Pt devices with different electrode patterns for nonvolatile memory application

In this report, we study crystallization and Raman spectral and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) changes in amorphous and nanocrystalline Si. Micro-Raman spectra combined with TEM show that considerable crystallization occurs in a-Si:H and a-Si(Al) (the structure of aluminum-diffused amorphous Si/Al/c-Si), but no additional crystallization was observed for nc-Si:H, after the exposure to a laser or accelerating electrons. Meanwhile, moving toward lower or higher energy for a-Si:H and nc-Si:H, by contrast, the Raman shift appeared for a-Si(Al) as if it were for single-crystalline Si, in which it remained constant at one energy, as the laser intensity increased or decreased.     

Surface recombination probabilities of H on stainless steel, a-Si:H and oxidized silicon determined by threshold ionization mass spectrometry in H2 RF discharges

H atom densities are measured by threshold ionization mass spectrometry in a H₂ parallel-plate RF discharge. Variations of H density near the surface in steady-state discharge conditions reveal different surface loss probabilities γ on stainless steel, hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) and oxidized silicon. Absolute γ values are obtained from time-resolved H density measurements in afterglow. The etching probability of Si per H atom incident on a-Si:H is also derived by monitoring SiH₄ partial pressure and SiH(A²Δ) optical emission.     

后退火增强氢化非晶硅钝化效果的研究

在本征氢化非晶硅(a-Si:H(i))/晶体硅(c-Si)/a-Si:H(i)异质结构上溅射ITO时, 发现后退火可大幅增加ITO/a-Si:H(i)/c-Si/a-Si:H(i)的少子寿命(从1.7 ms到4 ms). 这一增强效应可能的三个原因是: ITO/a-Si:H(i)界面场效应作用、退火形成的表面反应层影响以及退火对a-Si:H(i)材料本身的优化, 但本文研究结果表明少子寿命增强效应与ITO和表面反应层无关; 对不同沉积温度制备的a-Si:H(i)/c-Si/a-Si:H(i)异质结后退火的研究表明: 较低的沉积温度(<175 ℃)后退火增强效应显著, 而较高的沉积温度(>200 ℃)后退火增强效应不明显, 可以确定“低温长高温后退火”是获得高质量钝化效果的一种有效方式; 采用傅里叶红外吸收谱(FTIR)研究不同沉积温度退火前后a-Si:H(i)材料本身的化学键构造, 发现退火后异质结少子寿命大幅提升是由于a-Si:H(i)材料本身的结构优化造成的, 其深层次的本质是通过材料的生长温度和退火温度的优化匹配来控制包括H含量、H键合情况以及Si原子无序性程度等微观因素主导作用的一种竞争性平衡, 对这一平衡点的最佳控制是少子寿命大幅提升的本质原因.     

硅锗量子阱结构在硅异质结太阳电池中应用的数值模拟

利用半导体工艺和器件仿真软件silvaco TCAD(Technology Computer Aided Design),模拟研究了采用硅/硅锗合金(silicon/silicon germanium alloy,Si/Si_(1-x)Ge_x)量子阱结构作为吸收层的薄膜晶体硅异质结太阳电池各项性能.模拟结果显示,长波波段光学吸收随锗含量的增加而增加,而开路电压则因Si_(1-x)Ge_x)层带隙的降低而下降.锗含量为0.25时,短路电流密度的增加补偿了开路电压的衰减,效率提升0.2%.氢化非晶硅/晶体硅(a-Si:H/c-Si)界面空穴密度以及Si_(1-x)Ge_x)量子阱的体空穴载流子浓度制约着空穴费米能级的位置,进而影响到开路电压的大小.随着锗含量增加,a-Si:H/c-Si界面缺陷对开压的影响降低,Si_(1-x)Ge_x)量子阱的体缺陷对开压的影响则相应增加.高效率含Si_(1-x)Ge_x)量子阱结构的硅异质结太阳电池的制备需要a-Si:H/c-Si界面缺陷的良好钝化以及高质量Si_(1-x)Ge_x)量子阱的生长.     

Polycrystalline silicon films prepared by metal-induced crystallisation using pre- and post-deposited aluminium on amorphous silicon

We report on the successful fabrication of polycrystalline silicon films by aluminium-induced crystallisation (AIC) of Radio frequency (rf) plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposited (PECVD) a-Si films. The effects of annealing at different temperatures (300 and 400°C), below the eutectic temperature of the Si–Al binary system, on the crystallisation process have been studied. This work emphasises the important role of the position of the Al layer with respect to the Si layer on the crystallisation process. The properties of the crystallised films were characterised using X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, ellipsometry, field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). With an increase in the annealing temperature, it was found that the degree of crystallisation of annealed a-Si/Al and Al/a-Si films increased. The results showed that the arrangement where the Al was on top of the a-Si had a more prominent effect on crystallisation enhancement than when Al was below the a-Si. The interfacial layer between the Al and a-Si film is crucial because it influences the layer-exchange process during annealing. The oxide layer formed between the Al and the a-Si layers greatly retards the crystallisation process in the case of the Al/Si arrangement. Our investigations suggest that polycrystalline Si films formed by AIC can be used as a seed layer in solar cell fabrication.     

硅薄膜太阳能电池研究的进展

从制备方法、材料和结构的观点出发,概述非晶硅（a-Si)和多晶硅（poly-Si)薄膜太阳能电池研究的进展。对非晶硅特别是对多晶硅薄膜太阳能电池研究的重要结果进行了讨论。阐述非晶硅太阳能电池的各种应用,并对其光电系统进行介绍。对太阳能电池新产品如太阳能电池屋顶瓦及超轻灵活的太阳能电池的开发也作了简介。对由太阳能电池提供动力的空调设备作了叙述。讨论所得出的创新方案。     

退火对Ge诱导晶化多晶Si薄膜结晶特性的影响

本文采用磁控溅射法, 衬底温度500 ℃下在硅衬底上分别制备具有Ge填埋层的a-Si/Ge 薄膜和a-Si薄膜, 并进行后续退火, 采用Raman光谱、X射线衍射、原子力显微镜及场发射扫描电镜等对所制薄膜样品进行结构表征. 结果表明, Ge有诱导非晶硅晶化的作用, 并得出以下重要结论: 衬底温度为500 ℃时生长的a-Si/Ge薄膜, 经600 ℃退火5 h Ge诱导非晶硅薄膜的晶化率为44%, 在相同的退火时间下退火温度提高到700 ℃, 晶化率达54%. 相同条件下, 无Ge填埋层的a-Si薄膜经800 ℃退火5 h薄膜实现晶化, 晶化率为46%. 通过Ge填埋层诱导晶化可使在相同的条件下生长的非晶硅晶薄膜的晶化温度降低约200 ℃. Ge诱导晶化多晶Si薄膜在Si(200)方向具有高度择优取向, 且在此方向对应的晶粒尺寸约为76 nm. 通过Ge诱导晶化制备多晶Si薄膜有望成为制备高质量多晶Si薄膜的一条有效途径.     

Formation of ordered helium pores in amorphous silicon subjected to low-energy helium ion irradiation

Thin transparent (for transmission electron microscopy, TEM) self-supported Si(001) films are irradiated on the (110) end face by low-energy (E=17 keV) He⁺ ions at doses ranging from 5×10¹⁶ to 4.5×10¹⁷ cm⁻² at room temperature. The TEM study of the irradiated Si films along the ion range shows that an a-Si layer forms in the most heavily damaged region and helium pores (bubbles) with a density of up to 3×10¹⁷ cm⁻³ and 2–5 nm in diameter nucleate and grow across the entire width of this layer. The growth of nanopores in the a-Si layer is accompanied by their linear ordering into chains oriented along the ion tracks. The absence of pores in the region that remains crystalline and has the maximal concentration of implanted helium is explained by the desorption of helium atoms from the thin film during the irradiation. After annealing at 600°C, the volume of immobile pores in the remaining a-Si layer increases owing to the capture of helium atoms from the amorphous matrix. Solid solution is shown to be the prevalent state of the helium implanted into the amorphous silicon. Linear features with a diameter close to 1 nm and density of about 10⁷ cm⁻¹ discovered in the helium-doped a-Si layer are identified as low-energy He⁺ ion tracks.     

Growth,optical, and electrical properties of silicon films produced by the metal-induced crystallization process

Amorphous Si (a-Si) and Ni films were deposited by electron beam evaporation on to borosilicate glass (BSG) substrate maintained at ambient temperature. The BSG/a-Si/Ni stack was subjected to post deposition annealing in air at various temperatures from 200 to 500 °C for 1 h. Electron diffraction was employed to characterize the crystallographic phases appearing on the stacks that were depending on initial conditions. Clear evidence of the formation of hexagonal Si and fcc NiSi₂ was shown by TEM. In parallel, an increase of refraction index was observed. Electrical resistivity measurements showed that resistance is of the order of kilo ohms in the as-deposited films, increasing sharply to giga ohms in films annealed at T higher than 300 °C. A large band gap of 2.23 eV which is the combined contribution from a-Si, wurtzite-Si, and Ni silicide phases, is observed.     

In situ spectromicroscopic study of nickel induced lateral crystallization of amorphous silicon thin film using SPESM

Scanning photoelectron spectromicroscopy (SPESM) has been used to study nickel metal induced lateral crystallization (Ni-MILC) of amorphous silicon (a-Si) thin films, produced by in situ annealing of vacuum deposited Ni patterned films on a-Si. The spatial variations in the chemical composition of the Ni-MILC of a-Si were directly imaged. High-resolution photoemission spectra of both Si 2p and Ni 3p core levels and valence band were used to evaluate morphological changes and chemical interactions. Our direct spectromicroscopic characterization clearly shows that the Ni-MILC process in UHV leads to the lower crystallization temperature and a faster crystallization speed of a-Si, and a poly-Si film with high-crystallinity can be obtained. A unified mechanism for the enhanced growth rate of the high-crystallinity poly-Si film produced by Ni-MILC in UHV is proposed.     

Relationship between optical and structural properties of hydrogenated amorphous silicon

A series of experimental studies has been made on the relationship between optical and structural properties of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) prepared under various conditions. It has been clarified by analysing the results that the shape of the energy spectrum near the band edge and the distribution of the valence-band tail states depend primarily on the structural disorder of the Si network in a-Si:H. On the other hand, the total content and the bonding mode of bonded hydrogen have little effects on these electronic properties of a-Si:H. It has also been found that the distribution of the valenceband tail states might be related to other unidentified factor(s) besides the structural disorder. The present results have been compared with those of the previous experimental and theoretical studies.     

Effect of doping on structural,optical and electrical properties of nanostructure ZnO films deposited onto a-Si:H/Si heterojunction

We investigated the structural; optical and electrical properties of ZnO thin films as the n-type semiconductor for silicon a-Si:H/Si heterojunction photodiodes. The ZnO film forms the front contact of the super-strata solar cell and has to exhibit good electrical (high conductivity) and optical (high transmittance) properties. In this paper we focused our attention on the influence of doping on device performance. The results show that the X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra revealed a preferred orientation of the crystallites along c-axis. SEM images show that all films display a granular, polycrystalline morphology and the ZnO:Al exhibits a better grain uniformity. The transmittance of the doped films was found to be higher when compared to undoped ZnO. A low resistivity of the order of 2.8 × 10⁻⁴ Ω cm is obtained for ZnO:Al using 0.4 M concentration of zinc acetate. The photoluminescence (PL) spectra exhibit a blue band with two peaks centered at 442 nm (2.80 eV) and 490 nm (2.53 eV). It is noted that after doping the ZnO films a shift of the band by 22 nm (0.15 eV) is recorded and a high luminescence occurs when using Al as a dopant. Dark I–V curves of ZnO/a-Si:H/Si structure showed large difference, which means there is a kind of barrier to current flow between ZnO and a-Si:H layer. Doping films was applied and the turn-on voltages are around 0.6 V. Under reverse bias, the current of the ZnO/a-Si:H/Si heterojunction is larger than that of ZnO:Al/a-Si:H/Si. The improvement with ZnO:Al is attributed to a higher number of generated carriers in the nanostructure (due to the higher transmittance and a higher luminescence) that increases the probability of collisions.     

Atomic wire oxidation of H-terminated Si(100)-( 2x1): domino reaction via oxidation and H migration

We studied oxidation at a dangling bond (DB) on the H-terminated Si(100) surface by the first-principles calculations. We found that oxidation easily occurs at the exposed DB on the H-terminated Si(100) surface. The dissociated O atoms are chemisorbed at a dimer bond and a back bond, resulting in adjacent H atom migration onto the DB. As a consequence of the alternate oxidation and subsequent H atom migration processes, the atomic wire oxidation is actually found to occur on the H-terminated Si(100) surface at low temperatures without desorbing H atoms, as observed in our scanning tunneling microscopy experiment.     

Improved photovoltaic properties of a-Si/β-FeSi2/c-Si double heterojunction by Al-doping

Al-doped β-FeSi₂ thin film was sputtered on Si substrate and then applied to the amorphous-Si/β-FeSi₂/crystalline-Si (a-Si/β-FeSi₂/c-Si) double heterojunction. The X-ray diffraction result confirmed the formation of β-FeSi₂ crystallization. The result of carrier lifetime measurement implied that Al-doping could improve the carrier lifetime and infrared response property of β-FeSi₂ thin film. Such improvements were ascribed to the reduction of Si vacancy density by Al atom occupation. Based on the improved Al-doped β-FeSi₂ thin film, the prepared a-Si/β-FeSi₂/c-Si double heterojunction exhibited prominent enhancements in open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current density, fill factor, and energy conversion efficiency than that of the un-doped β-FeSi₂ double heterojunction. These results reveal an attractive way to improve the photovoltaic property of a-Si/β-FeSi₂/c-Si double heterojunction using Al-doped β-FeSi₂ thin film.     

Origins of interdiffusion, crystallization and layer exchange in crystalline Al/amorphous Si layer systems

Aluminium-induced crystallization of amorphous silicon (a-Si) in Al/a-Si and a-Si/Al bilayers was studied upon annealing at low temperatures between 165 and 250 °C, by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). Upon annealing the inward diffusion of Si along grain boundaries in Al takes place, followed by crystallization of this diffused Si. Continuous annealing leads to (more or less) layer exchange in both types of bilayers. The change in bulk energy of the Al phase (release of macrostress and microstrain, increase of grain size) promotes the occurrence of layer exchange, whereas changes in surface and interface energies counteract the layer exchange.     

Quantum emission efficiency of nanocrystalline and amorphous Si quantum dots

The paper presents the comparison of emission efficiencies for crystalline Si quantum dots (QDs) and amorphous Si nanoclusters (QDs) embedded in hydrogenated amorphous (a-Si:H) films grown by the hot wire-CVD method (HW-CVD) at the variation of technological parameters. The correlations between the intensities of different PL bands and the volumes of Si nanocrystals (nc-Si:H) and/or an amorphous (a-Si:H) phase have been revealed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and photoluminescence (PL) methods. These correlations permit to discuss the PL mechanisms in a-Si:H films with embedded nc-Si QDs. The QD parameters of nc-Si:H and a-Si:H QDs have been estimated from PL results and have been compared (for nc-Si QDs) with the parameters obtained by the XRD method. Using PL and XRD results the relations between quantum emission efficiencies for crystalline (η_cr) and amorphous (η_am) QDs have been estimated and discussed for all studied QD samples. It is revealed that a-Si:H films prepared by HW-CVD with the variation of wire temperatures are characterized by better passivation of nonradiative recombination centers in comparison with the films prepared at the variation of substrate temperatures or oxygen flows.     

In situ ellipsometric characterization and process control for amorphous thin film deposition

Characterization of the growth of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) and carbon (a-C:H) thin films by in situ ellipsometric analysis at 3.4 eV and 3.2 eV is reported. For a-Si:H, prepared on metal substrates from an rf discharge of SiH₄, in situ ellipsometry data are strongly influenced by the SiSi bond packing density in the growing film. Deviations in the data from model calculations assuming a thickness independent a-Si:H dielectric function, when analyzed using an effective medium approximation, reveal the geometry and scale of the initial nucleation process. Effects of the deposition conditions and substrate microstructure on the coalescence of initial nuclei are understood on the basis of new measurements. For a-C:H, prepared on c-Si substrates from CH₄ by direct ion beam deposition, ellipsometry measurements in the initial stages of growth provide monolayer sensitivity to the formation of an absorbing SiC_x layer at the substrate interface. Fits to the data in the later stages of growth establish the real and imaginary parts of the bulk dielectric function at 3.2 eV, allowing real time categorization of the nature of the bonding in such films.     

Instability of one-dimensional dangling-bond wires on H-passivated C(001), Si(001), and Ge(001) surfaces

We investigate the instability of one-dimensional dangling-bond (DB) wires fabricated on the H-terminated C(001), Si(001), and Ge(001) surfaces by using density-functional theory calculations. The three DB wires are found to show drastically different couplings between charge, spin, and lattice degrees of freedom, resulting in an insulating ground state. The C DB wire has an antiferromagnetic spin coupling between unpaired DB electrons, caused by strong electron–electron interactions, whereas the Ge DB wire has a strong charge-lattice coupling, yielding a Peierls-like lattice distortion. For the Si DB wire, the antiferromagnetic spin ordering and the Peierls instability are highly competing with each other. The physical origin of such disparate features in the three DB wires can be traced to the different degree of localization of 2p, 3p, and 4p DB orbitals.     

Fabrication of large-grain polycrystalline silicon for solar cells

The rapid recrystallization of a-Si films utilizing excimer laser crystallization (ELC) is investigated. The melt duration of liquid silicon (liquid Si) is measured by in-situ time-resolved optical measurements during ELC. The grain size of crystallized poly-Si films are characterized by FE-SEM. The substrate temperature as a function of the longest melt duration of liquid Si for different Si film thicknesses are presented. In-situ timeresolved optical measurements reveal that the longest melt duration of 400-nm-thick a-Si thin films at a substrate temperature of 500 °C is 1714 ns. The diameter of the disk grain as large as 4.7 μm is produced by ELC, which can be applied to solar cells with a high conversion efficiency and reliability.