Optical properties of erbium-doped porous silicon waveguides

Planar and buried channel porous silicon waveguides (WG) were prepared from p⁺-type silicon substrate by a two-step anodization process. Erbium ions were incorporated into pores of the porous silicon layers by an electrochemical method using ErCl₃-saturated solution. Erbium concentration of around 10²⁰ at/cm³ was determined by energy-dispersive X-ray analysis performed on SEM cross-section. The luminescence properties of erbium ions in the IR range were determined and a luminescence time decay of 420 μs was measured. Optical losses were studied on these WG. The increased losses after doping were discussed.     

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.     

Irreversible quenching of luminescence in porous silicon

The influence of applied voltage on photoluminescence (PL) in porous silicon was studied. A strong PL band around 680 nm was observed when excited by a 300 nm ultraviolet light with no voltage applied, but upon increasing the bias voltage, a strong and progressive decrease of the PL intensity was observed leading finally to a complete quenching of the emitted light at 1.80 V. The peak position of the emission appears to be stable. This effect is completely irreversible, and the spectra depend on the increased voltage to the sample and corresponding temperature increase. Nonradiative recombination resulting from the thermal oxidation was suggested to be responsible for the quenching.     

Polarization phenomena in the optical properties of porous silicon

We examine the polarization memory effect for porous Si excited by linearly polarized light. The various observations for the red-luminescing, slow band are discussed in the general framework of particle shape asymmetry. We show that because of the intrinsically nonlinear luminescence response, measurement parameters influence the polarization response. The preparation of porous Si with photoassisted etching is found to control the polarization retention parameter ρ. Using linearly polarized light during etching produces in-plane asymmetries. We find a substantial ρ-anisotropy linked to crystal symmetry planes and axes as a consequence of anisotropic etching. The effects are discussed with reference to current models of the light emission mechanism.     

Photoluminescent properties of silicon carbide and porous silicon carbide after annealing

Photoluminescent (PL) p-type 6H porous silicon carbides (PSCs), which showed a strong blue-green photoluminescence band centered at approximately 490 nm, were annealed in Ar and vacuum conditions. The morphological, optical, and chemical states after annealing are reported on electrochemically etched SiC semiconductors.The thermal treatments in the Ar and vacuum environments showed different trends in the PL spectra of the PSC. In particular, in the case of annealing in a vacuum, the PL spectra showed both a weak red PL peak near 630 nm and a relatively intense PL peak at around 430 nm in the violet region. SEM images showed that the etched surface had spherical nanostructures, mesostructures, and islands. With increasing annealing temperature it changes all spherical nanostructures. The average pore size observed at the surface of the PSC before annealing was of the order of approximately 10 nm.In order to investigate the surface of a series of samples in detail, both the detection of a particular chemical species and the electronic environments at the surface are examined using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The chemical states from each XPS spectrum depend differently before and after annealing the surface at various temperatures. From these results, the PL spectra could be attributed not only to the quantum size effects but also to the oxide state.     

Tunability of the photoluminescence in porous silicon due to different polymer dielectric environments

In this report we demonstrate control over porous silicon (PSi) emission properties by changing the dielectric environment surrounding the silicon crystallites, as well as provide information on the effects of pore infiltration of PSi. This is achieved by making PSi–polymer nanocomposites by diffusing or polymerizing a range of varying dielectric constant polymers into the pores. The degree of modification in photoluminescence (PL) depends on the dielectric constant of the polymers. By increasing the dielectric constant of the environment surrounding the crystallites, a blue shift in PL as high as 222 meV has been observed. The blue shift is attributed to the high dielectric constant of the polymers relative to PSi, which causes a partial screening of the excitons allowing the excitonic levels to shift closer to the bandgap. The shift in excitonic levels increases when the dielectric constant of the polymer increases. PSi–polymer nanocomposites also exhibit an increase in PL intensity, which suggest that the inert infiltrated polymers are able to passivate existing nonradiative channels.     

Light propagation in polytype Thue–Morse structures made of porous silicon

For the first time, two different sets of polytype Thue–Morse multilayered porous silicon structures are studied to investigate the reflection of light in aperiodic dielectrics. The optical response of the samples was studied before and after oxidation. The results were compared with the classical periodic structure, and an enhancement in the number of photonic bandgaps with a significant blue shift in reflectance peaks, in some of the structures, were observed. Numerical simulation along the lines of the transfer matrix approach is also presented.     

Buffer layer influence on guiding properties of oxidized porous silicon waveguides

We studied the influence of the thickness and porosity of the buffer layer on the guiding properties of oxidized porous silicon waveguides (OPSWG). It is demonstrated how a modified anodization process acts on the porosity of the final oxidized porous silicon. In this way, it is possible to control the refractive index jump between the core of OPSWG made of compact silicon dioxide and the bottom buffer layer made of porous silicon dioxide. The adoption of a double-step anodization process decreases the propagation losses to 0.5 dB/cm against the 8 dB/cm measured for the waveguide realized using a single-step anodization. The main reason seems not to be the increase of the difference of refractive index values but the more homogeneous buffer layer obtained along the core of the waveguide. This homogeneous layer permits a better lateral confinement of the light as demonstrated by spatial refractive index profile measurement.     

Optical properties of hybrid periodic/quasiregular dielectric multilayers

Optical properties like transmission, omnidirectional reflection and localization of modes are theoretically investigated in hybrid periodic/quasiregular dielectric heterostructures based on porous silicon. It is shown that the fabrication of this class of multilayers would lead to an improvement of the formation of microcavities, the widening of the incidence angular interval for total reflection as well as the appearance of spatial localization of electric field intensity within specific regions of the structures.     

Effects of thermal oxidation on the photoluminescence properties of porous silicon

The effects of thermal oxidation on the photoluminescence (PL) properties of powdered porous silicon (PSi) are studied using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). It is found that the PL intensity is steeply quenched after annealing at and recovered at above . The XPS intensity of oxides formed on the PSi surface is also found to strongly depend on the annealing temperature. The comparison between the annealing temperature dependence of PL intensity and that of the oxide XPS intensity suggests that the formation of thin disordered SiO₂ layer accompanies the quenching of the PL intensity, and that the formation of thick high-quality SiO₂ layer results in the PL intensity recovery. These results indicate that the thickness and quality of SiO₂ layer play a crucial role in the PL properties of thermally oxidized PSi.     

Influence of LiBr on photoluminescence properties of porous silicon

A new method has been developed to improve the photoluminescence intensity of porous silicon (PS), which is first time that LiBr is used for passivation of PS. Immersion of the PS in a LiBr solution, followed by a thermal treatment at 100 °C for 30 min under nitrogen, leads to a nine fold increase in the intensity of the photoluminescence. The atomic force microscope (AFM) shows an increase of the nanoparticle dimension compared to the initial dimension of the PS nanostructure. The LiBr covers the nanoparticles of silicon without changing the wavelength distribution of the optical excitation and emission spectra. Moreover, a significant decrease of reflectivity was observed for the wavelength in the range of 350-500 nm.     

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.     

Efficient luminescence from porous silicon

Photoluminescence measurements are carried out on porous silicon layers. We show the enhancement and stabilization of the luminescence when depositing a silicon nitride layer on top of porous layers.We also demonstrate that direct- and remote-plasma nitridation are good ways to reduce the ageing effect of porous silicon layers due to a passivation of dangling bonds.     

Annealing and amorphous silicon passivation of porous silicon with blue light emission

The photoluminescence (PL) of the annealed and amorphous silicon passivated porous silicon with blue emission has been investigated. The N-type and P-type porous silicon fabricated by electrochemical etching was annealed in the temperature range of 700-900 °C, and was coated with amorphous silicon formed in a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) process. After annealing, the variation of PL intensity of N-type porous silicon was different from that of P-type porous silicon, depending on their structure. It was also found that during annealing at 900 °C, the coated amorphous silicon crystallized into polycrystalline silicon, which passivated the irradiative centers on the surface of porous silicon so as to increase the intensity of the blue emission.     

Fabrication and tribological properties of super-hydrophobic surfaces based on porous silicon

In the present work, super-hydrophobic surfaces based on porous silicon (PS) were constructed by the self-assembled molecular films and their tribological properties were investigated. A simple chemical etching approach was developed to fabricate PS with the certain rough microstructure surface, which can be observed by the environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM). The hydrocarbon and fluorocarbon alkylsilane molecular films were self-assembled on PS, which was confirmed by the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurement. In contrast to PS, the alkylsilane molecular films modified PS (mPS) were super-hydrophobic since the apparent water contact angle (CA) exceeded 160°. The tribological properties of PS and the mPS were investigated by a ball-on-disk tribometer during the processes of different sliding velocities and normal loads. The experimental results showed that the alkylsilane molecular films could decrease the friction coefficient. Due to the difference of chain structure and functional groups, the fluorinated alkylsilane films are better candidates for improving the hydrophobicity and lubricating characteristics of PS comparing to the non-fluorinated ones. The carbon chain length of alkylsilane molecules self-assembling on the Si or PS substrates could have little effects on the hydrophobic properties and the tribology performances.     

Optical waveguides in porous silicon pre-patterned by localised nitrogen implantation.

FIPOS technology forms islands of silicon isolated from a silicon substrate by (oxidised) porous silicon. The larger refractive index of the silicon islands suggests their use as optical waveguides. Sets of these silicon islands have been fabricated and the anticipated waveguiding has been observed at wavelengths of 1.15 and 1.3 μm in the silicon islands. However, the dominant waveguiding in these FIPOS structures is observed in the porous silicon between the silicon islands, close to the sample surface. A simple dynamic model of the anodisation process has been developed to explain the origin of this unexpected waveguiding.     

Influence of experimental parameters on physical properties of porous silicon and oxidized porous silicon layers

This paper reports physical properties of porous silicon and oxidized porous silicon, manufactured by anodisation from heavily p-type doped silicon wafers as a function of experimental parameters. The growth rate and refractive index of the layers were studied at different applied current densities and glycerol concentrations in electrolyte. When the current density varied from 5 to 100 mA/cm², the refractive index was between 1.2 and 2.4 which corresponded to a porosity range from 42 to 85%. After oxidation, the porosity decreased and was between 2 and 45% for a refractive index range from 1.22 to 1.46. The thermal processing also induced an increase in thickness which was dependent on the initial porosity. This increase in thickness was more important for the lowest porosities. Lastly, the roughness of the porous layer/silicon substrate interface was studied at different applied current densities and glycerol concentrations in solution. Roughness decreased when the current density or glycerol concentration increased. Moreover, roughness was also reduced by thermal oxidation.     

Low-porosity porous silicon nanostructures on monocrystalline silicon solar cells

In this work we present a study of low-porosity porous silicon (PS) nanostructures stain etched on monocrystalline silicon solar cells. The PS layers reduce the reflectance, improve the diffusion of dopants by rapid thermal processes, and increase the homogeneity of the sheet resistance. Some samples were subjected to chemical oxidation in HNO₃ to reduce the porosity of the surface layer. After the diffusion process, deposition of a SiN_x antireflection layer, and screen printing of the samples, an efficiency of 15.5% is obtained for low-porosity PS solar cells, compared with an efficiency of 10.0% for standard PS cells and 14.9% for the reference Cz cells.     

All porous silicon microcavities: growth and physics

The spontaneous emission of a material can be controlled by placing it in a micron-sized optical cavity. In this paper we introduce the subject and we discuss the realization, the physics and perspective applications of all porous silicon microcavities. The emission properties of the cavities have been characterized as a function of the temperature, of the excitation power and of the response time. Coupled microcavities are demonstrated. Modeling of the structure have been performed on the basis of a transfer matrix approximation.     

Electrical properties of purified solar grade silicon substrates using a combination of porous silicon and SiCl4

This work investigates the photo-thermal treatment of solar grade (SG) silicon to reduce impurities to a low level suitable for high efficiency low-cost solar cells application. It describes experiment carried out by using a tungsten lamps furnace (rapid thermal processing, RTP) to purify solar grade silicon wafers using a combination of porous silicon (PS) and silicon tetrachloride. This process enables to attract the impurities towards the porous layer where they react with SiCl₄ to form metallic chlorides. The gettering effect was studied using the Hall Effect and the Van Der Pauw methods to measure the resistivity, the majority carrier concentration and mobility. We have obtained a significant improvement of the majority carrier mobility after such thermo-chemical treatment. The gettering efficiency is also evaluated by the relative increase of the minority carrier diffusion length L, measured by the light beam induced current (LBIC) technique.