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Study of Er-related Defects in a-Si:H(Er) Films Used in Light Emitting Heterostructures

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2011

A. Nazarov ,
Ja. Vovk ,
V. Lysenko ,
O. Kon'kov ,
E. Terukov  and
S. Ashok
A. Nazarov
Affiliation:
Institute of Semiconductor Physics, NASU, Prospekt Nauki 45, 03028 Kyiv, UKRAINE.
Ja. Vovk
Affiliation:
Institute of Semiconductor Physics, NASU, Prospekt Nauki 45, 03028 Kyiv, UKRAINE.
V. Lysenko
Affiliation:
Institute of Semiconductor Physics, NASU, Prospekt Nauki 45, 03028 Kyiv, UKRAINE.
O. Kon'kov
Affiliation:
Ioffe Physical and Technical Institute, RAS, Politechnicheskaya str. 26, 194021 Sankt Petersburg, RUSSIA.
E. Terukov
Affiliation:
Ioffe Physical and Technical Institute, RAS, Politechnicheskaya str. 26, 194021 Sankt Petersburg, RUSSIA.
S. Ashok
Affiliation:
Departement of Engineering Science, Pennsylvania State University, 212 Earth and Engineering Science Building, University Park, PA 16802, U.S.A.
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Abstract

Defects relating to Er-doping of hydrogenated amorphous silicon films in amorphous/ crystalline (a-Si:H(Er) / n-Si) heterostructures used as light emitters were studied. Electrical parameters of the defects were evaluated by thermally activated current (TAC) and capacitance (TACap) spectroscopy, and high-frequency (1 MHz) capacitance-voltage (C-V) characteristics measured at 77 K. For charging of the traps, visible light illumination at low temperatures and thermal-bias stress at various temperatures were used. The amplitude of TAC was found to increase monotonically with increase of Er concentration in the a-Si:H film. The traps, with activation energies in the range 0.10 - 0.35 eV and 0.5 - 0.6 eV, were charged under both light and thermal-bias stress, and may be associated with the deep levels in the band-gap of a-Si:H. High-temperature current peaks with activation energies of 0.8-0.9 eV emerged only under thermal-bias stress and were strongly dependent on the charging temperature. It is suggested that these high-temperature thermally activated processes are related to polarization of the Er-O bonds in the amorphous matrix of a-Si:H. C-V measurements show that charging of the structure by negative substrate bias leads to net electron trapping in the a-Si:H(Er) film, whereas charging by positive bias result in net hole trapping. The model of Er-related electroluminescence in a-Si:H(Er) / n-Si heterostructures involving electron-hole recombination via deep levels located in the vicinity of [Er-O] inclusions is discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 719: Symposium F – Defect- and Impurity-Engineered Semiconductors and Devices III , 2002 , F8.42
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2002

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