A simple route of morphology control and structural and optical properties of ZnO grown by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition

Employing the metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) technique, we prepare ZnO samples with different morphologies from the film to nanorods through conveniently changing the bubbled diethylzinc flux (BDF) and the carrier gas flux of oxygen (OCGF). The scanning electron microscope images indicate that small BDF and OCGF induce two-dimensional growth while the large ones avail quasi-one-dimensional growth. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman scattering analyses show that all of the morphology-dependent ZnO samples are of high crystal quality with a c-axis orientation. From the precise shifts of the 2 theta. locations of ZnO (002) face in the XRD patterns and the E-2(high) locations in the Raman spectra, we deduce that the compressive stress forms in the ZnO samples and is strengthened with the increasing BDF and OCGF. Photoluminescence spectroscopy results show all the samples have a sharp ultraviolet luminescent band without any defects-related emission. Upon the experiments a possible growth mechanism is proposed.

Tuning of energy levels and optical properties of graphene quantum dots

We investigate theoretically the magnetic levels and optical properties of zigzag- and armchair-edged hexagonal graphene quantum dots (GQDs) utilizing the tight-binding method. A bound edge state at zero energy appears for the zigzag GQDs in the absence of a magnetic field. The magnetic levels of GQDs exhibit a Hofstadter-butterfly spectrum and approach the Landau levels of two-dimensional graphene as the magnetic field increases. The optical properties are tuned by the size, the type of the edge, and the external magnetic field.

Comparative study of optical properties between quantum dot chains band quantum dots

A comparative study of the steady-state and transient optical properties was made between InGaAs/GaAs quantum do chains (QDCs) and quantum dots (QDs). It was found that the photoluminescence (PL) decay time of QDCs exhibited a strong photon energy dependence, while it was less sensitive in QDs. The PL decay time increased much faster with the excitation power in the QDCs than that in QDs. When the excitation power was large enough, the PL decay time tended to be saturated. In addition, it was also found that the PL rise time was much shorter in QDCs than in QDs. All these experimental results show that there is a strong carrier coupling along the chain direction in the QD chain structure. The polarization PL measurements further confirm the carrier transfer process along the chain direction.

Effects of accumulated strain on the surface and optical properties of stacked 1.3 mu m InAs/GaAs quantum dot structures

We report the effects of accumulated strain by stacking on the surface and optical properties of stacked 1.3 mu m InAs/GaAs quantum dot (QD) structures grown by MOCVD. It is found that the surface of the stacked QD structures becomes more and more undulated with stacking, due to the increased strain in the stacked QD structures with stacking. The photoluminescence intensity from the QD structures first increases as the stacking number increases from 1 to 3 and then dramatically decreases as it further increases, implying a significant increase in the density of crystal defects in the stacked QD structures due to the accumulated strain. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the strain can be reduced by simply introducing annealing steps just after growing the GaAs spacers during the deposition of the stacked QD structures, leading to significant improvement in the surface and optical properties of the structures. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Optical properties of InGaAs/GaAs quantum chains

We have investigated the steady-state and transient optical properties of InGaAs/GaAs quantum chains and found that the photoluminescence (PL) decay time exhibits a strong photon energy dependence. It increases with the decrease of the emission energy. It is also found that the PL decay time increases with the excitation power. When the excitation power is large enough the PL decay time tends to be saturated. All these experimental results show that there is a strong carrier coupling along the chain direction in the quantum dot chain structure. The polarization PL measurements further confirm the carrier transfer process along the chain direction.

Using different carrier gases to control AlN film stress and the effect on morphology, structural properties and optical properties

On the metalorganic chemical vapour deposition growth of AlN, by adjusting H-2+N-2 mixture gas components, we can gradually control island dimension. During the Volmer - Weber growth, the 2-dimensional coalescence of the islands induces an intrinsic tensile stress. Then, this process can control the in-plane stress: with the N-2 content increasing from 0 to 3 slm, the in-plane stress gradually changes from 1.5 GPa tensile stress to - 1.2GPa compressive stress. Especially, with the 0.5 slm N-2 + 2.5 slm H-2 mixture gas, the in-plane stress is only 0.1 GPa, which is close to the complete relaxation state. Under this condition, this sample has good crystal and optical qualities.

Fabrication and Infrared Optical Properties of Nano Vanadium Dioxide Thin Films

Vanadium dioxide thin films were fabricated by ion beam sputtering on Si3N4/SiO2/Si after a post reductive annealing process in a nitrogen atmosphere. X-ray Diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were employed to analyze the effects of post annealing temperature on crystallinity, morphology, and composition of the vanadium oxide thin films. Transmission properties of vanadium dioxide thin films were measured by Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. The results showed that the as-deposited vanadium oxide thin films were composed of non-crystalline V2O5 and a tetragonal rutile VO2. After annealing at 400 degrees C for 2 h, the mixed phase vanadium oxide (VOx) thin film changed its composition and structure to VO2 and had a (011) oriented monoclinic rutile structure. When increasing the temperature to 450 degrees C, nano VO2 thin films with smaller grains were obtained. FT-IR results showed that the transmission contrast factor of the nano VO2 thin film was more than 0.99 and the transmission of smaller grain nano VO2 thin film was near zero at its switched state. Nano VO2 thin film with smaller grains is an ideal material for application in optical switching devices.

Optical properties of aluminum-, gallium-, and indium-doped Bi4Ti3O12 thin films

Undoped and Al-, Ga-, and In-doped Bi4Ti3O12 thin films were prepared on fused quartz substrates by chemical solution deposition. Their microstructures and optical properties were investigated by x-ray diffraction and UV-visible-NIR spectrophotometer, respectively. The optical band-gap energies, Urbach energies, and linear refractive indices of all the films are derived from the transmittance spectrum. Following the single oscillator model, the dispersion parameters such as the average oscillator energy (E-0) and dispersion energy (E-d) are achieved. The energy band gap and refractive indices are found to decrease with introducing the dopants of Al, Ga, and In, which is useful for the band-gap engineering and optical waveguide devices. The refractive index dispersion parameter (E-0/S-0) increases and the chemical bonding quantity (beta) decreases in all the films compared with those of bulk. It is supposed to be caused by the nanosize grains in films. (c) 2009 American Institute of Physics. [DOI 10.1063/1.3138813]

Thickness dependent dislocation, electrical and optical properties in InN films grown by MOCVD

InN thin films with different thicknesses are grown by metal organic chemical vapor deposition, and the dislocations, electrical and optical properties are investigated. Based on the model of mosaic crystal, by means of X-ray diffraction skew geometry scan, the edge dislocation densities of 4.2 x 10(10) cm(-2) and 6.3 x 10(10) cm(-2) are fitted, and the decrease of twist angle and dislocation density in thicker films are observed. The carrier concentrations of 9 x 10(18) cm(-3) and 1.2 x 10(18) cm(-3) are obtained by room temperature Hall effect measurement. V-N is shown to be the origin of background carriers, and the dependence of concentration and mobility on film thickness is explained. By the analysis of S-shape temperature dependence of photoluminescence peak, the defects induced carrier localization is suggested be involved in the photoluminescence. Taking both the localization and energy band shrinkage effect into account, the localization energies of 5.05 meV and 5.58 meV for samples of different thicknesses are calculated, and the decrease of the carrier localization effect in the thicker sample can be attributed to the reduction of defects.

Growth-Parameter Spaces and Optical Properties of Cubic Boron Nitride Films on Si(001)

Cubic boron nitride (c-BN) films were deposited on Si(001) substrates in an ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD) system under various conditions, and the growth parameter spaces and optical properties of c-BN films have been investigated systematically. The results indicate that suitable ion bombardment is necessary for the growth of c-BN films, and a well defined parameter space can be established by using the P/a-parameter. The refractive index of BN films keeps a constant of 1.8 for the c-BN content lower than 50%, while for c-BN films with higher cubic phase the refractive index increases with the c-BN content from 1.8 at chi(c) = 50% to 2.1 at chi(c) = 90%. Furthermore, the relationship between n and rho for BN films can be described by the Anderson-Schreiber equation, and the overlap field parameter gamma is determined to be 2.05.

Temperature Insensitivity of Optical Properties of InAs/GaAs Quantum Dots due to a Pregrown InGaAs Quantum Well

Both the peak position and linewidth in the photoluminescence spectrum of the InAs/GaAs quantum dots usually vary in an anomalous way with increasing temperature. Such anomalous optical behaviour is eliminated by inserting an In0.2Ga0.8As quantum well below the quantum dot layer in molecular beam epitaxy. The insensitivity of the photoluminescence spectra to temperature is explained in terms of the effective carrier redistribution between quantum dots through the In0.2Ga0.8As quantum well.

Structural and optical properties of ZnO films on SrTiO3 substrates by MOCVD

ZnO films have been fabricated on (0 0 1), (0 1 1) and (1 1 1) SrTiO3 (STO) substrates by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD). It is interesting that the ZnO films on (0 0 1) and (0 1 1) STO substrates show polar and semipolar orientations, which are different from previous reports, while the same growing direction of polar ZnO with previous results is found on (1 1 1) STO. For the atomic arrangements, two orthogonal domains and a single domain are observed on (0 0 1) and (1 1 1) STO, respectively. Photoluminescence spectra show that every sample has a sharp near-band-edge emission peak at about 3.28 eV without any deep-level emission band between 1.5 and 2.8 eV, implying a high optical quality. A violet emission around 3.0 eV is observed only in ZnO films on (0 0 1) and (0 1 1) STO substrates grown at 600 degrees C, which is discussed briefly. Additionally, the semipolar ZnO does not weaken the emission efficiency along with the reduction in the polarization effect compared with polar ZnO. These results show that high-quality polar and semipolar ZnO films can be grown on STO substrates by MOCVD.

Indium mole fraction effect on the structural and optical properties of quaternary AlInGaN epilayers

AlInGaN quaternary epilayers with varying In mole fraction were investigated using triple-axis x-ray diffraction and photoluminescence measurements. The indium compositional fluctuation is enhanced with increasing In mole fraction, whereas the mosaicity of the AlInGaN epilayers is determined through the GaN template quality. Based on the analysis of the temperature dependence of the PL peak position, it is found that the localization effect strengthens with increasing In mole fraction due to the larger fluctuations of the In distribution. Increasing the influence of the localized state results in increasing the emission intensity and FWHM with the In content.

Impacts of hydrogen dilution on growth and optical properties of a-SiC : H films

Hydrogenated amorphous silicon-carbon (a-SiC:H) films were deposited by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) with a fixed methane to silane ratio ([CH4]/[SiH4]) of 1.2 and a wide range of hydrogen dilution (R-H=[H-2]/[SiH4 + CH4]) values of 12, 22, 33, 102 and 135. The impacts of RH on the structural and optical properties of the films were investigated by using UV-VIS transmission, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) absorption, Raman scattering and photoluminescence (PL) measurements. The effects of high temperature annealing on the films were also probed. It is found that with increasing hydrogen dilution, the optical band gap increases, and the PL peak blueshifts from similar to1.43 to 1.62 eV. In annealed state, the room temperature PL peak for the low R-H samples disappears, while the PL peak for the high R-H samples appears at similar to 2.08 eV, which is attributed to nanocrystalline Si particles confined by Si-C and Si-O bonds.

Structural and optical properties of GaAsSb/GaAs heterostructure quantum wells

The structural and optical properties of MBE-grown GaAsSb/GaAs multiple quantum wells (MQWs) as well as strain-compensated GaAsSb/GaAs/GaAsP MQWs are investigated. The results of double crystal X-ray diffraction and reciprocal space mapping show that when strain-compensated layers are introduced, the interface quality of QW structure is remarkably improved, and the MQW structure containing GaAsSb layers with a high Sb composition can be coherently grown. Due to the influence of inserted GaAsP layers on the energy band and carrier distribution of QWs, the optical properties of GaAsSb/GaAs/GaAsP MQWs display a lot of features mainly characteristic of type-I QWs despite the type-II GaAsSb/GaAs interfaces exist in the structure. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.