Effect of ion irradiation on the structure and luminescence characteristics of porous silicon impregnated with tungsten-telluride glass doped by Er and Yb impurities

Using transmission electron microscopy and elemental analysis, it has been shown that tungsten telluride glass (TTG) containing erbium and ytterbium as impurities penetrates into pores of porous silicon (PS) when melted in vacuum at 500°C. It has been found that the intensity of photoluminescence (PL) of erbium at the wavelength of 1.54 μm in PS: TTG layers increases by a factor of up to 5 in the layers irradiated by P⁺ and Ar⁺ ions. This is assigned to ion mixing which favors interaction among the Er ions and PS-embedded Si nanocrystals initiating sensitization of the PL, as well as to broadening of the glass-impregnated PS region. Implantation of the lighter Ne⁺ ions affects only weakly the PL of erbium ions.     

Erbium photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy in Si: Er epitaxial structures

Excitation spectra of erbium photoluminescence in Si: Er epitaxial structures are studied within a broad pump wavelength range (λ_ex = 780–1500 nm). All the structures studied reveal a fairly strong erbium photoluminescence signal at photon energies substantially smaller than the silicon band-gap width (λ = 1060 nm) with no exciton generation. A possible mechanism of erbium ion excitation in silicon without exciton involvement is discussed.     

Er<Superscript>3+</Superscript> photoluminescence excitation spectra in erbium-doped epitaxial silicon structures

Excitation spectra of erbium photoluminescence (λ=1540 nm) in Si: Er epitaxial structures were studied within a broad pump wavelength range (λ=780–1500 nm). Erbium photoluminescence was observed to occur at pump energies substantially less than the silicon band-gap width. Possible mechanisms of erbium ion excitation in this pump radiation energy region are discussed.     

Excitation of erbium in the heterogeneous nanocrystalline matrix of amorphous silicon

The erbium photoluminescence decay kinetics at a wavelength of 1.54 μm in amorphous hydrogenated silicon films obtained at high oxygen concentrations in a magnetron gas discharge is investigated. Optically active erbium is found to exist both in the semiconducting matrix of amorphous silicon and in dielectric nanocrystals of erbium silicate, which are formed in this case. The concentration ratio of excited erbium in amorphous silicon and in the nanocrystals is determined, as well as the time of excitation transfer from erbium in amorphous silicon to erbium in the nanocrystals. The mechanism of erbium excitation in this heterogeneous system is considered. The external quantum yield of erbium photoluminescence measured at a wavelength of 1.54 μm and room temperature is found to be 0.3–0.4%.     

Luminescence of porous silicon films with an europium-containing complex

We obtained porous silicon films modified at room temperature by an Eu³⁺-containing polymer complex. The most intense photoluminescence of Eu³⁺ implanted in the porous silicon was observed at the wavelengths of 611, 618, 691, and 704 nm. In this case, the intensity of the intrinsic photoluminescence of strongly irradiated specimens of porous silicon decreased, while the intensity of weakly emitting films multiply increased. An investigation of the photoexcitation spectra made it possible to establish the effect of Eu³⁺-containing complexes on the mechanism underlying the excitation of photoluminescence of porous silicon. Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 64, No. 4, pp. 499–501, July–August, 1997.     

Correlation of excitation-wavelength dependent photoluminescence with the fractal microstructures of porous silicon

The correlation of the excitation-wavelength dependent photoluminescence with the fractal microstructures of porous silicon has been investigated. As the excitation wavelength increases from 340 to 650 nm, the photoluminescence of porous silicon redshifts from 500 to 780 nm. The excitation-wavelength dependent photoluminescence suggests the existence of a size distribution for the large number of silicon nanocrystallites in porous silicon. Using scanning electron microscopy and computer simulation, we have investigated the fractal features of the microstructures of porous silicon. Our results have demonstrated that the fractal features in the microstructures of porous silicon indicate the existence of a size distribution for the silicon nanocrystallites in porous silicon. The recorded excitation-wavelength dependent photoluminescence of porous silicon can be interpreted in terms of the bond-order-length-strength correlation theory.     

Effective excitation cross section of erbium in amorphous hydrogenated silicon under optical pumping

The effective excitation cross section of erbium embedded in an amorphous silicon matrix and the total lifetime of erbium ions in the excited state are determined by measuring the photoluminescence rise time of erbium ions under pulsed excitation of erbium-doped amorphous hydrogenated silicon. An analysis of the rate equations describing the excitation and deexcitation of erbium ions in a semiconducting matrix sheds light on the physical meaning of the effective excitation cross section. It is shown that measurement of the effective excitation cross section permits evaluation of the concentration of optically active erbium ions in the amorphous silicon matrix.     

Properties of erbium silicate doped with chromium in porous silicon

The possible formation of chromium-doped erbium silicate Er₂SiO₅: Cr in thin layers of porous silicon is demonstrated. This paper reports on studies of the photoluminescence, electron paramagnetic resonance, and transverse current transport in porous silicon layers (with different chromium and erbium contents) grown on n-and p-silicon single crystals heavily doped with shallow impurities. The Er₂SiO₅: Cr phase with the photoluminescence maxima at approximately 1.3 and 1.5 μm manifests itself after high-temperature annealing at 1000°C. The introduction of erbium and annealing at 700°C increase the intensity of the red photoluminescence of porous silicon by several factors. The decrease in the electrical conductivity of porous silicon suggests the onset of the formation of erbium silicate. The current-voltage characteristics exhibit a nonlinear behavior with an exponential dependence of the current on the voltage due to the discrete electron tunneling. An electron paramagnetic resonance spectrum of P _b centers in p-type heavily doped silicon is observed for the first time.     

多孔硅的分形结构及其荧光特性

用扫描电子显微镜(SEM)对多孔硅的结构进行了分析.结果显示多孔硅具有分形特性,同计算机模拟结果一致;用荧光光谱仪,研究了多孔硅的荧光特性与激发波长的依赖关系.激发光谱测量结果发现,当激发波长从650 nm变到340 nm时,荧光谱峰位从红端780 nm连续蓝移到500 nm.综合分析说明：正是由于多孔硅的分形微结构以及量子限制效应,导致了多孔硅的荧光特性随激发波长改变的物理现象.     

Modification of erbium photoluminescence excitation spectra for the emission wavelength 1.54 μm in mesoscopic structures

Photoluminescence excitation (PLE) spectra for the emission wavelength 1.54 μm were studied for erbium-doped xerogels embedded in artificial opals and porous anodic alumina films. Opals were chosen with photonic stop-band in green spectral range, where excitation of 1.54 μm occurs most efficiently. In comparison to the structure erbium-doped titania xerogel/porous anodic alumina/silicon the photoluminescence excitation spectra for 1.54 μm emission wavelength significantly changes for the same xerogels embedded in artificial opals. Enhancement of erbium-related 1.54 μm emission was observed from the structure Fe₂O₃ xerogel/porous anodic alumina fabricated on silicon, having some incompletely anodized aluminium, under excitation with either the lasing source at 532 nm or xenon lamp. Evident difference in PLE spectra for erbium doped TiO₂ and Fe₂O₃ xerogels in porous anodic alumina is observed.     

Improvement of photoluminescence and electrical properties of porous silicon layer treated with lanthanum

The influence of surface treatment of porous silicon (PS) in lanthanum (La) containing solution during different times on its photoluminescence and electrical properties has been investigated. For this purpose, chemical composition, structural, vibrational, photoluminescence and electrical characteristics of the porous silicon layer with and without lanthanum were examined using X-ray diffractometry (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, Fourier transmission infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and current–voltage (I–V) measurements. The results indicate that porous silicon layers treated with lanthanum exhibit an enhancement of photoluminescence intensity and show an improvement current intensity compared to untreated porous silicon layer.     

Erbium excitation in a SiO<Subscript>2</Subscript>: Si-nc matrix under pulsed pumping

The photoluminescence of Er³⁺ ions in a SiO₂ matrix containing silicon nanocrystals 3.5 nm in diameter is studied under resonant and nonresonant pulsed pumping with pulses 5 ns in duration. The effective erbium excitation cross section under pulsed pumping, σ_eff = 8.7 × 10^?17 cm₂, is close to that for nanocrystals. Comparison of the erbium photoluminescence intensity obtained for a SiO₂ matrix with and without nanocrystals made it possible to determine the absolute concentration of optically active nanocrystals capable of exciting erbium ions, the concentration of optically active erbium, and the average number of erbium ions excited by one nanocrystal. The study revealed that excitation transfer from one erbium ion to another is a relatively slow process, which accounts for the low efficiency of erbium ion excitation under pulsed pumping in a SiO₂ matrix containing silicon nanocrystals.     

Er离子注入的富硅SiO2MOS-LED的可见和红外电致发光特性

通过Er离子和Si离子注入并结合高温退火制备了Er掺杂的富硅SiO2薄膜以及ITO/SiON/富硅SiO2:Er/Si MOS结构电致发光器件.研究了富Si浓度的变化对Er3+离子掺杂的电致发光器件的发光性能和传导特性的影响.发现不同Si含量对Er3+离子的不同能级的电致发光会产生不同作用.在富Si量小于5％的条件下,...     

Graphene: Nanostructure engineering and applications

Single-crystal erbium silicate nanowires have attracted considerable attention because of their high optical gain. In this work, we report the controlled synthesis of silicon-erbium ytterbium silicate core-shell nanowires and fine-tuning the erbium mole fraction in the shell from x = 0:3 to x = 1:0, which corresponds to changing the erbium concentration from 4:8 × 10²¹ to 1:6 × 10²² cm^-3. By controlling and properly optimizing the composition of erbium and ytterbium in the nanowires, we can effectively suppress upconversion photoluminescence while simultaneously enhancing near-infrared emission. The composition-optimized nanowires have very long photoluminescence lifetimes and large emission cross-sections, which contribute to the high optical gain that we observed. We suspended these concentration-optimized nanowires in the air to measure and analyze their propagation loss and optical gain in the near-infrared communication band. Through systematic measurements using wires with different core sizes, we obtained a maximum net gain of 20±8 dB·mm^-1, which occurs at a wavelength of 1534 nm, for a nanowire with a diameter of 600 nm and a silicon core diameter of 300 nm.

     

Peculiarities of photoluminescence of erbium in silicon structures prepared by the sublimation molecular-beam epitaxy method

The photoluminescence of semiconducting structures Si: Er: O/Si grown by the molecular-beam epitaxy method is studied. The dependences of Er photoluminescence intensity on the intensity of pumping are measured at the liquid helium temperature. An analysis of the experimental results on the basis of the exciton model of excitation of Er ions in a crystalline silicon matrix reveals the significant role played by an alternative channel of free-exciton trapping (apart from the donor energy levels of erbium-oxygen complexes), as well as that played by the nonradiative channel in the recombination of excitons, bound to erbium donors, without the excitation of erbium. The ratio of the concentration of optically active centers of erbium luminescence to the total concentration of introduced erbium is estimated.     

Optical properties of neodymium incorporated in porous silicon

We report the optical properties of Nd-incorporated porous silicon. Photoluminescence and photoluminescence excitation measurements have been performed. Room temperature emission spectra from dried or annealed samples have been studied. While steady-state photoluminescence results indicate porous silicon light absorption by the Nd, the photoluminescence excitation shows a deficiency of energy transfer between porous silicon and Nd ions.     

Influence of the ion synthesis and ion doping regimes on the effect of sensitization of erbium emission by silicon nanoclusters in silicon dioxide films

The photoluminescence spectra of erbium centers in SiO₂ films with ion-synthesized silicon nanoclusters under nonresonant excitation were investigated. Erbium was introduced into thermal SiO₂ films by ion implantation. The dependences of photoluminescence intensity on the dose, the order of ion implantation of Si and Er, the annealing temperature, and additional Ar⁺ and P⁺ ion irradiation regimes, i.e., factors determining the influence of radiation damage and doping on sensitization of erbium luminescence by silicon nanoclusters, were determined. It was found that the sensitization effect and its amplification due to doping with phosphorus are most pronounced under the conditions where nanoclusters are amorphous. The quenching of photoluminescence due to radiation damage in this case manifests itself to a lesser extent than for crystalline nanoclusters. The role of various factors in the observed regularities was discussed in the framework of the existing concepts of the mechanisms of light emission and energy exchange in the system of silicon nanoclusters and erbium centers.     

1.54 μm Emission of pulsed-laser deposited Er-doped films on Si

We investigate the photoluminescence properties of Er-doped SiO₂ and glass films fabricated by pulsed-laser deposition (PLD) for different deposition parameters and erbium host materials. The luminescence yield of SiO₂ : Er films increases strongly with increasing oxygen background pressure during laser ablation. We compare SiO₂ and soda-lime glass as host materials for erbium ions. Under identical growth conditions and the same erbium concentrations in both targets, films deposited from the soda-lime glass show a much higher luminescence yield. This enhancement is attributed to a higher concentration of optically active erbium in the multicomponent glass environment.     

532 nm纳秒激光辐照下的单晶硅表面微结构及荧光特性

采用Nd:YAG纳秒脉冲激光对单晶硅在空气中进行辐照,研究了表面微结构在不同能量密度和扫描速度下的演化情况。扫描电子显微镜测量表明,激光在相对较低能量密度下辐照硅表面诱导出鱼鳞状波纹结构,激光能量密度相对较大时,诱导出絮状多孔的不规则微结构。光致荧光谱（PL）表明,激光扫描区域在710 nm附近有荧光发射。用氢氟酸腐蚀掉样品表面的SiOx后,荧光峰的强度显著降低,说明SiOx在光致发光增强上起重要作用。能量色散X射线谱（EDS）表明氧元素的含量随激光能量密度的增大而增加。研究表明:纳秒激光的能量密度和扫描速度对微结构形成起着决定性作用,改变了硅材料表面微结构尺寸,增大了光吸收面积; 氧元素在光致发光增强上起重要作用,微构造硅和SiOx对光致荧光的发射都有贡献。     

Photoluminescence of Er<Superscript>3+</Superscript> ions in layers of quasi-ordered silicon nanocrystals in a silicon dioxide matrix

The spectra and kinetics of photoluminescence from multilayered structures of quasi-ordered silicon nanocrystals in a silica matrix were studied for undoped samples and samples doped with erbium. It was shown that the optical excitation energy of silicon nanocrystals could be effectively transferred to Er³⁺ ions, which was followed by luminescence at a wavelength of 1.5 µm. The effectiveness of energy transfer increased as the size of silicon nanocrystals decreased and the energy of exciting light quanta increased. The excitation of erbium luminescence in the structures was explained based on dipole-dipole interaction (the Förster mechanism) between excitons in silicon nanocrystals and Er³⁺ ions in silica surrounding them.