Properties of erbium luminescence in bulk crystals of silicon carbide

The infrared luminescence of Er³⁺ ions has been studied in bulk crystals of silicon carbide 6H-SiC doped with erbium in the process of their growth. The erbium centers of different symmetry in the crystals are revealed by the EPR technique. A number of intense luminescence bands of erbium ions are observed at a wavelength of about 1.54 µm. The luminescence can be excited by the light with quantum energies above and below the band gap of SiC. It is found that the luminescence exhibits unusual temperature behavior: as the temperature increases, the luminescence intensity abruptly rises starting with 77 K, passes through a maximum at ～240 K, and, in the vicinity of ～400 K, decreases down to the values observed at 77 K. The activation energies for the flare-up and quenching of the Er³⁺ luminescence are estimated at E _A ≈130 and ≈350 meV, respectively. The mechanisms of the flare-up and quenching of the Er³⁺ luminescence in SiC are discussed.