Room-temperature electroluminescence from hydrogenated amorphous carbon nitride film

Electroluminescence devices in the structure of anode/poly(methylphenylsilane)/hydrogenated amorphous carbon nitride/cathode have been fabricated. A strong visible emission is observed at room temperature and the emission intensity increases with the increase of the current density. In this device, poly(methylphenylsilane) acts as a hole transporting and electron blocking layer. It is evidenced that the emission region is near the interface between the poly(methylphenylsilane) and hydrogenated amorphous carbon nitride layers. The electroluminescence properties are discussed and compared with the photoluminescence of the hydrogenated amorphous carbon nitride film.     

Nanoindentation of hydrogenated amorphous silicon

Nanoindentation was carried out on thin films of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) prepared by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. The composite values of elastic (Young's) modulus, E _c, and hardness, H _c, of the film/substrate system were evaluated from the load–displacement curves using the Oliver–Pharr approach. The film-only parameters were obtained employing the extrapolation of the depth profiles of E _c and H _c. Scanning probe microscopy was employed to image the nanoindenter impressions and to estimate the effect of film roughness and material pile-up on the testing results. It was established that the elastic modulus of thin a-Si:H films is in the range 117–131 GPa, which is lower than for crystalline silicon. In contrast, the values of hardness are in the range 12.2–12.7 GPa, which is comparable to crystalline silicon and higher than for hydrogen-free amorphous silicon. It is suggested that the plastic deformation of a-Si:H proceeds through plastic flow and it is the presence of hydrogen in the amorphous matrix that leads to a higher hardness.     

Photoluminescence and electroluminescence from porous silicon

The properties and origins of the red, blue and infrared photoluminescence bands of porous silicon are reviewed and discussed in the light of the models that have been proposed to explain the experimental and theoretical results. The red band is due to quantum confinement possibly supplemented by surface states; the blue band is linked to the presence of silicon dioxide; the infrared band is correlated with dangling bonds and bandgap luminescence in large crystallites. The fabrication and characterization of light-emitting devices made of porous silicon are reported and discussed with respect to critical issues such as the device stability, efficiency, modulation speed, emission wavelength, and compatibility with microelectronic processing.     

Dynamics of hydrogen in hydrogenated amorphous silicon

The problem of hydrogen diffusion in hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) is studied semiclassically. It is found that the local hydrogen concentration fluctuations-induced extra potential wells, if intense enough, lead to the localized electronic states in a-Si:H. These localized states are metastable. The trapping of electrons and holes in these states leads to the electrical degradation of the material. These states also act as recombination centers for photo-generated carriers (electrons and holes) which in turn may excite a hydrogen atom from a nearby Si-H bond and breaks the weak (strained) Si-Si bond thereby apparently enhancing the hydrogen diffusion and increasing the light-induced dangling bonds.     

氢化非晶硅薄膜的热导率研究

采用铂电极为加热电阻,研究了厚度为300—370nm等离子体化学气相沉积(PECVD)工艺制备的氢化非晶硅(a-Si：H)薄膜的热导率随衬底温度的变化规律.用光谱式椭偏仪拟合测量薄膜的厚度,得到了沉积速率随衬底温度变化规律,傅里叶红外(FTIR)表征了在KBr晶片衬底上制备的a-Si：H薄膜的红外光谱特性,SiH原子团键合模的震动对热量的吸收降低了薄膜热导率.从动力学角度分析了薄膜热导率随平均温度升高而增大的原因,并比较了声子传播和自由电子移动在a-Si：H薄膜热导率变化上的作用差异. 关键词： 非晶硅 热导率 薄膜 热能     

Influence of heterogeneities on the electronic properties of hydrogenated amorphous silicon

An attempt is made to highlight the importance of inhomogeneities in hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H), in controlling its electronic properties. We note that hydrogen increases the gap in a-Si:H and that hydrogen is distributed inhomogeneously in it. This gives rise to long-range potential fluctuations, which are mostly uncorrelated and usually ignored. These and other such considerations have not only enabled us to gain new insights into the behaviour of a-Si:H in general, but have also allowed us to resolve several unsolved puzzles. Among these are questions like why undoped a-Si:H is n-type, why the creation of dangling bonds upon light soaking (LS) so inefficient, why a-Si:H degrades more upon LS when it is doped, why the reciprocity fails for light-induced degradation, why presence of nanocrystalline silicon improves stability and so on. We provide evidence to support some of our ideas and make suggestions for verifying the others.     

Surface passivation of crystalline silicon by sputter deposited hydrogenated amorphous silicon

This letter shows that intrinsic hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a‐Si:H) films deposited by RF magnetron sputtering can provide outstanding passivation of crystalline silicon surfaces, similar to that achieved by plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD). By using a 2% hydrogen and 98% argon gas mixture as the plasma source, 1.5 Ω cm n‐type FZ silicon wafers coated with sputtered a‐Si:H films achieved an effective lifetime of 3.5 ms, comparable to the 3 ms achieved by PECVD (RF and microwave dual‐mode). This is despite the fact that Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy measurements show that sputtering and PECVD deposited films have very different chemical bonding configurations. We have found that film thickness and deposition temperature have a significant impact on the passivation results. Self‐annealing and hydrogen plasma treatment during deposition are likely driving forces for the observed changes in surface passivation. These experimental results open the way for the application of sputtered a‐Si:H to silicon heterojunction solar cells. (© 2014 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

氢化非晶硅薄膜晶体管的低频噪声特性

针对氢化非晶硅薄膜晶体管(hydrogenated amorphous silicon thin film transistor,a-Si:H TFT)的低频噪声特性展开实验研究.由测量结果可知,a-Si:H TFT的低频噪声特性遵循1/f~γ(f为频率,γ≈0.92)的变化规律,主要受迁移率随机涨落效应的影响.基于与迁移率涨落相关的载流子数随机涨落模型(?N-?μ模型),在考虑源漏接触电阻、局域态俘获及释放载流子效应等情况时,对器件低频噪声特性随沟道电流的变化进行分析与拟合.基于a-Si:H TFT的亚阈区电流-电压特性提取器件表面能带弯曲量与栅源电压之间的关系,通过沟道电流噪声功率谱密度提取a-Si:H TFT有源层内局域态密度及其分布.实验结果表明:局域态在禁带内随能量呈e指数变化,两种缺陷态在导带底密度分别约为6.31×10~(18)和1.26×10~(18)cm~(-3)·eV~(-1),特征温度分别约为192和290 K,这符合非晶硅层内带尾态密度及其分布特征.最后提取器件的平均Hooge因子,为评价非晶硅材料及其稳定性提供参考.     

Photoluminescence analyses of hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride thin films

Silicon-rich hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride (a-SiN_x:H) films were grown by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) with different r=NH₃/SiH₄ gas flow ratios. The optical absorption characteristics were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and UV-visible transmittance spectroscopies. The recombination properties were investigated via photoluminescence (PL) measurements. As r was increased from 2 to 9, the PL emission color could be adjusted from red to blue with the emission intensity high enough to be perceived by naked eye at room temperature. The behaviors of the PL peak energy and the PL band broadness with respect to the optical constants were discussed in the frame of electron-phonon coupling and band tail recombination models. A semiquantitative analysis supported the band tail recombination model, where the recombination was found to be favored when the carriers thermalize to an energy level at which the band tail density of states (DOS) reduces to some fraction of the relevant band edge DOS. For the PL efficiency comparison of the samples with different nitrogen contents, the PL intensity was corrected for the absorbed intensity fraction of the incident PL excitation source. The resulted correlation between the PL efficiency and the subgap absorption tail width further supported the band tail recombination model.     

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.     

Voltage-tunable photo- and electroluminescence of porous silicon

Experimental results showing two electrically induced phenomena, namely the voltage-tunable electroluminescence (VTEL) and the voltage-induced quenching of porous silicon photoluminescence (QPL) are given. In both cases, a spectral shift as large as 300 nm can be recorded for an external bias variation of only 0.5 V. This spectral shift is characterised by a blue-shift of the whole EL line in the case of the VTEL whereas it results from a progressive and selective quenching starting by the low-energy part of the luminescence line in the case of the QPL experiments. The origin of this spectral shift is discussed in relation with an electrically induced selective carrier injection into the silicon nanocrystallites accompanied with an enhancement of the non-radiative recombination taking place by an Auger relaxation process. Finally, it is shown that a partial oxidation of the porous silicon layer leads to a complete loss of the selectivity of these two phenomena. This result is qualitatively discussed by considering the voltage drop distribution between the substrate and the silicon nanocrystallites. The voltage drops are modified by the growth of the oxide layer on the nanocrystallite surface leading to a modification of the energy barriers at the crystallite boundaries.     

Pressure dependence of photoconductivity for hydrogenated amorphous silicon

Abstract

Measurements of steady-state photoconductivity for hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) have been carried out at pressures up to 14 GPa and at room temperature. The ratio of photoconductivity to darkconductivity [sgrave]p/[sgrave]D decreases with increasing pressure. The activation energy for photoconductivity Ep, which is 0.25 eV at ambient pressure, decreases with increasing pressure at the rate -7 meV/GPa. These resultls are discussed with change in density of states.     

Study on stability of hydrogenated amorphous silicon films

Hydrogenated amorphous silicon （a-Si：H） films with high and same order of magnitude photosensitivity （-10^5） but different stability were prepared by using microwave electron cyclotron resonance chemical vapour deposition system under the different deposition conditions. It was proposed that there was no direct correlation between the photosensitivity and the hydrogen content （CH） as well as H-Si bonding configurations, but for the stability, they were the critical factors. The experimental results indicated that higher substrate temperature, hydrogen dilution ratio and lower deposition rate played an important role in improving the microstructure of a-Si：H films. We used hydrogen elimination model to explain our experimental results.     

椭偏透射法测量氢化非晶硅薄膜厚度和光学参数

针对多角度椭偏测量透明基片上薄膜厚度和光学参数时基片背面非相干反射光的影响问题,报道了利用椭偏透射谱测量等离子增强化学气相沉积法(PECVD)制备的a-Si:H薄膜厚度和光学参数的方法,分析了基片温度T_s和辉光放电前气体温度T_g的影响.研究表明,用椭偏透射法测量的a-Si:H薄膜厚度值与扫描电镜(SEM)测得的值相当,推导得到的光学参数与其他研究者得到的结果一致.该方法可用于生长在透明基片上的其他非晶或多晶薄膜. 关键词： 椭偏测量 透射法 光学参数 氢化非晶硅薄膜     

Infrared electroluminescence from erbium-doped spark-processed silicon

The infrared (IR) electroluminescence (EL) of erbium-doped spark-processed silicon (sp-Si) was investigated. For this, a device was constructed which consisted of a silicon wafer on which an erbium layer was vapor deposited, followed by spark-processing and rapid thermal annealing for 15 min at 900 °C in air. The metallization consisted of a 200 nm Ag layer (above the spark-processed area) and a 50 nm thick Al film (on the “back side”), containing a window through which the light could escape. Maximal light emission occurred near 1.55 μm, that is, at a wavelength where commonly used fiber optical materials have their minimum in energy loss. The processing parameters for most efficient light emission were an Er thickness of 200-300 nm, a spark-processing time of about 30 s, an n-type Si wafer having a low (3-5 Ω cm) resistivity, an operating temperature near room temperature, and an operating voltage between 25 and 40 V under reverse bias. The results are interpreted by postulating an energy transfer from sp-Si to the Er³⁺ ions involving the first excited state ⁴I_13/2 to ground state ⁴I_15/2. Further, impact excitation and hot electrons that are accelerated into the erbium doped sp-Si by the applied field (100 kV/cm) are considered.     

Specificities of light-induced relaxation of metastable defects in amorphous hydrogenated silicon

The thermal relaxation kinetics of light-induced metastable defects in a-Si:H was studied prior to and after partial relaxation in the dark and in a dim light. The film lighting was found to change the relaxation rate of the defects and their distribution in relaxation time. This was demonstrated to be due to the concurrent light-induced relaxation and formation of the defects.     

氢化非晶硅薄膜中氢含量及键合模式的红外分析

Fourier红外透射(FTIR)谱技术是研究氢化非晶硅（a-Si∶H）薄膜中氢的含量（CH）及硅—氢键合模式（Si-Hn）最有效的手段.对用等离子体化学气相沉积（PCVD）方法在不同的衬底温度（Ts）下制备出的氢化非晶硅薄膜，通过红外透射光谱的基线拟合、高斯拟合分析，得到了薄膜中的氢含量，硅氢键合模式及其组分，并分析了这些参量随衬底温度变化的规律.     

Enhanced quantum efficiency in polymer electroluminescence devices by inserting an ultrathin PMMA layer

We report an increase of electroluminescence (EL) efficiency by about two times for poly(2-methoxy-5-(2′-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-phenylene vinylene) (MEH-PPV) based polymer light-emitting diodes (PLED) while employing an ultrathin layer of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) between a hole injection layer, polyethylenedioxythiophenne:polystyrenesulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) and an emitting layer, MEH-PPV. The peak power efficiency of the control device (ITO/MEH-PPV/LiF/Al) was 0.42 lm/W with a current efficiency of 0.66 cd/A. The device with the optimized thickness of PMMA interface layer shows the highest power efficiency of 1.15 lm/W at a current efficiency exceeding 1.83 cd/A. The significant improvement in the device performance is attributed to the decrease of holes injection and the promotion of electrons injection, which cause the balance of the carriers within the emitting layer.     

非晶硅锗电池性能的调控研究

采用射频等离子体增强化学气相沉积技术, 研究了非晶硅锗薄膜太阳电池. 针对非晶硅锗薄膜材料的本身特性, 通过调控硅锗合金中硅锗的比例, 实现了对硅锗薄膜太阳电池中开路电压和短路电流密度的分别控制. 借助于本征层硅锗材料帯隙梯度的设计, 获得了可有效用于多结叠层电池中的非晶硅锗电池. 关键词： 非晶硅锗薄膜太阳电池 短路电流密度 开路电压 带隙梯度     

非晶微晶过渡区域硅薄膜的微区喇曼散射研究

通过改变氢气对硅烷气体的稀释程度,并保持其他的沉积参量不变,用等离子体增强化学气相沉积(PECVD)方法成功地制备出处于非晶微晶相变过渡区域的硅薄膜样品.测量了样品的室温光电导和暗电导,样品的光电性能优越,在50mW·cm-2的白光照射下,光电导和暗电导的比值达到106.在室温下用微区喇曼谱研究了薄膜的微结构特性,用高斯函数对喇曼谱进行了拟合分析.结果表明,在我们的样品制备条件下,当H2和SiH4的流量比R较小时,样品表现出典型的非晶硅薄膜的结构特性;随流量比R的增大,薄膜表现出两相结构,其中的微晶成分随 关键词： 非晶硅 薄膜 喇曼散射 微结构