Fabrication of high quality two-dimensional photonic crystal mask layer patterns

This work discusses the fabrication of two-dimensional photonic crystal mask layer patterns. Photonic crystal patterns having holes with smooth and straight sidewalls are achieved by optimizing electron beam exposure doses during electron beam lithography process. Thereafter, to precisely transfer the patterns from the beam resist to the SiO2 mask layer, we developed a pulse-time etching method and optimize various reaction ion etching conditions. Results show that we can obtain high quality two-dimensional photonic crystal mask layer patterns.

Mode Analysis for Equilateral-Triangle-Resonator Microlasers with Metal Confinement Layers

Mode characteristics are analyzed for electrically injected equilateral-triangle-resonator (ETR) semiconductor microlasers, which are laterally confined by insulating barrier SiO2 and electrode metals Ti-Au. For the ETR without metal layers, the totally confined mode field patterns are derived based on the reflection phase shifts, and the Q-factors are calculated from the far-field emission of the analytical near field distribution, which are agreement very well with the numerical results of the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulation. The polarization dependence reflections for light rays incident on semiconductor-SiO2 -Ti-Au multi-layer structures are accounted in considering the confinement of TE and TM modes in the ETR with the metal layers. The reflectivity will greatly reduce with a Ti layer between SiO2 and Au for light rays with incident angle less than 30 especially for the TE mode, even the thickness of the Ti layer is only 10 nm. If the ETR is laterally confined by SiO2-Au layers without the Ti layer, the Fabry-Perot type modes with an incident angle of zero on one side of the ETR can also have high Q-factor. The FDTD simulation for the ETR confined by metal layers verifies the above analysis based on multi-layer reflections. The output spectra with mode intervals of whispering-gallery modes and Fabry-Perot type modes are observed from different ETR lasers with side length of 10 m, respectively.

1.55 mu m Ge islands resonant-cavity-enhanced detector with high-reflectivity bottom mirror

A 1.55 mum Ge islands resonant-cavity-enhanced (RCE) detector with high-reflectivity bottom mirror was fabricated by a simple method. The bottom mirror was deposited in the hole formed by anisotropically etching in a basic solution from the back side of the sample with the buried SiO2 layer in silicon-on-insulator substrate as the etch-stop layer. Reflectivity spectrum indicates that the mirror deposited in the hole has a reflectivity as high as 99% in the range of 1.2-1.65 mum. The peak responsivity of the RCE detector at 1543.8 nm is 0.028 mA/W and a full width at half maximum of 5 nm is obtained. Compared with the conventional p-i-n photodetector, the responsivity of RCE detector has a nearly threefold enhancement. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.

Novel room temperature photoluminescence of Ge/Si islands in multilayer structure grown on silicon-on-insulator substrate

Novel room temperature photoluminescence (PL) of the Ge/Si islands in multilayer structure grown on silicon-on-insulator substrates is investigated. The cavity formed by the mirrors at the surface and the buried SiO2 interface has a strong effect on the PL emission. The peak position is consistent with the theoretical calculation and independent of the exciting power, which is the evidence of cavity effect on the room temperature photoluminescence. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Crystallization of amorphous Si films by pulsed laser annealing and their structural characteristics

Nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si) films were prepared by pulsed laser annealed crystallization of amorphous silicon (alpha-Si) films on SiO2-coated quartz or glass substrates. The effect of laser energy density on structural characteristics of nc-Si films was investigated. The Ni-induced crystallization of the a-Si films was also discussed. The surface morphology and microstructure of these films were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and Raman scattering spectroscopy. The results show that not only can the alpha-Si films be crystallized by the laser annealing technique, but also the size of Si nanocrystallites can be controlled by varying the laser energy density. Their average size is about 4-6 nm. We present a surface tension and interface strain model used for describing the laser annealed crystallization of the alpha-Si films. The doping of Ni atoms may effectively reduce the threshold value of laser energy density to crystallize the alpha-Si films, and the flocculent-like Si nanostructures could be formed by Ni-induced crystallization of the alpha-Si films.

Microstructural and compositional characteristics of GaN films grown on a ZnO-buffered Si(111) wafer

Polycrystalline GaN thin films have been deposited epitaxially on a ZnO-buffered (111)-oriented Si substrate by molecular beam epitaxy. The microstructural and compositional characteristics of the films were studied by analytical transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A SiO2 amorphous layer about 3.5 nm in thickness between the Si/ZnO interface has been identified by means of spatially resolved electron energy loss spectroscopy. Cross-sectional and plan-view TEM investigations reveal (GaN/ZnO/SiO2/Si) layers exhibiting definite a crystallographic relationship: [111](Si)//[111](ZnO)//[0001](GaN) along the epitaxy direction. GaN films are polycrystalline with nanoscale grains (similar to100 nm in size) grown along [0001] direction with about 20degrees between the (1 (1) over bar 00) planes of adjacent grains. A three-dimensional growth mode for the buffer layer and the film is proposed to explain the formation of the as-grown polycrystalline GaN films and the functionality of the buffer layer. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cavity-enhanced photoluminescence of SiGe/Si multiquantum wells grown on silicon-on-insulator substrate

Sharp and strong room-temperature photoluminescence (PL) of the Si0.59Ge0.41/Si multiquantum wells grown on the silicon-on-insulator substrate is investigated. The cavity formed by the mirrors at the surface and the buried SiO2 interface enhances the PL emission and has a wavelength-selective effect on the luminescence. The peak position is consistent with the simulation result and independent of the exciting power, which indicates a strong cavity effect on the room-temperature PL. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.

Long-wavelength SiGe/Si MQW resonant-cavity-enhanced photodiodes (RCE-PD)

Si1-xGex/Si optoelectronic devices are promising for the monolithic integration with silicon-based microelectronics. SiGe/Si MQW RCE-PD (Resonant-Cavity-Enhanced photodiodes) with different structures were investigated in this work. Design and fabrication of top- and bottom-incident RCE-PD, such as growth of SiGe MQW (Multiple Quantum Wells) on Si and SOI (Si on insulator) wafers, bonding between SiGe epitaxial wafer and SOR (Surface Optical Reflector) consisting Of SiO2/Si DBR (Distributed Bragg Reflector) films on Si, and performances of RCE-PD, were presented. The responsivity of 44mA/W at 1.314 mum and the FWHM of 6nm were obtained at bias of 10V. The highest external quantum efficiency measured in the investigation is 4.2%.

Formation of self-assembly and the mechanism of Si nanoquantum dots prepared by low pressure chemical vapor deposition

Si nanoquantum dots have been formed by self-assembled growth on the both Si-O-Si and Si-OH bonds terminated SiO2 surfaces using the low-pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) and surface thermal decomposition of pure SiH4 gas. We have experimentally studied the variation of Si. dot density with Si-OH bonds density, deposition temperature and SiH4 pressure, and analyzed qualitatively the formation mechanism of the Si nanoquantum dots based on LPCVD surface thermal dynamics principle. The results are very. important for the control of the density and size of Si nanoquantum dots, and have potential applications in the new quantum devices.

Radiation hardness improvement of separation-by-implantation-of-oxygen/silicon-on-insulator material by nitrogen ion implantation

In our work, nitrogen ions were implanted into separation-by-implantation-of-oxygen (SIMOX) wafers to improve the radiation hardness of the SIMOX material. The experiments of secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) analysis showed that some nitrogen ions were distributed in the buried oxide layers and some others were collected at the Si/SiO2 interface after annealing. The results of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) suggested the density of the defects in the nitrided samples changed with different nitrogen ion implantation energies. Semiconductor-insulator-semiconductor (SIS) capacitors were made on the materials, and capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements were carried out to confirm the results. The super total dose radiation tolerance of the materials was verified by the small increase of the drain leakage current of the metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor with n-channel (NMOSFETs) fabricated on the materials before and after total dose irradiation. The optimum implantation energy was also determined.

Proof of solid state cathodoluminescence by using brightness waveform

Three different inorganic-organic hetero-junctions (A : ITO/SiO2/Alq(3)/Al, B: ITO/Alq3/SiO2/Al and C: ITO/SiO2/Alq(3)/ SiO2/Al) were fabricated. The emission can be observed only under positive bias in devices A and B, but under both biases in device C according to their brightness waveforms. With increasing voltage, the increase in blue emission in devices B and C is faster than that in green emission. This is because that the recombination of hot electrons and holes, i.e., electron-hole pairs, produced blue emission in devices B and C, and the recombination of electrons injected from Al with the accumulated holes, which are excited by hot electrons, produced green emission in device A. Hence, the emissions of the devices are attributed to not only the recombination of electrons and accumulated holes, but also the cathodoluminescence-like (CL-like) emission.

Characteristics of oxide-free InGaAlAs layers grown by narrow stripe selective MOVPE

Narrow stripe selective MOVPE has been used to grow high quality oxide-free InGaAlAs layers on an InP substrate patterned with SiO2 masks at optimized growth conditions. Mirror-like surface morphologies and abrupt cross sections are obtained in all samples without spike growth at the mask edge. For the narrow stripe selectively grown InGaAlAs layers with a mesa width of about 1.2 mu m, a bandgap wavelength shift of 70 nm, a photoluminescence (PL) intensity of more than 80% and a PL full width at half maximum (FWHM) of less than 60 meV are obtained simultaneously with a small mask width variation from 0 to 40 mu m. The characteristics of the thickness enhancement ratio and the PL spectrum dependence on the mask width are presented and explained by considering both the migration effect from a masked region and the lateral vapour diffusion effect.

Growth of aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes under ac electric fields through floating catalyst chemical vapour deposition

Through floating catalyst chemical vapour deposition(CVD) method, well-aligned isolated single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and their bundles were deposited on the metal electrodes patterned on the SiO2/Si surface under ac electric fields at relatively low temperature(280 degrees C). It was indicated that SWCNTs were effectively aligned under ac electric fields after they had just grown in the furnace. The time for a SWCNT to be aligned in the electric field and the effect of gas flow were estimated. Polarized Raman scattering was performed to characterize the aligned structure of SWCNTs. This method would be very useful for the controlled fabrication and preparation of SWCNTs in practical applications.

Photoluminescence and transmission spectra of nanocrystalline GaAs1-xSbx embedded in silica films

The composite films of the nanocrystalline GaAs1-xSbx-SiO2 have been successfully deposited on glass and GaSb substrates by radio frequency magnetron co-sputtering. The 10K photoluminescence (PL) properties of the nanocrystalline GaAs1-xSbx indicated that the PL peaks of the GaAs1-xSbx nanocrystals follow the quantum confinement model very closely. Optical transmittance spectra showed that there is a large blue shift of optical absorption edge in nanocrystalline GaAs1-xSbx-SiO2 composite films, as compared with that of the corresponding bulk semiconductor, which is due to the quantum confinement effect.

Silicon membrane resonant-cavity-enhanced photodetector

A Si resonant-cavity-enhanced (RCE) photodiode was fabricated on a silicon membrane. The Si membrane was formed by etching from the back side of the silicon-on-insulator substrate with the buried SiO2 layer as etch-stop layer. A gold layer was deposited serving as an electrode layer and bottom mirror of the RCE photodiode. The photodiode had an external quantum efficiency of 33.8% at the resonant wavelength of 848 nm and a full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 17 nm. The responsivity was 4.6 times that of a conventional Si p-i-n photodiode with the same absorption layer thickness. (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics.