Photoluminescence from Er-doped silicon oxide microcavities

Interaction between rare-earth ions and amorphous silicon nanoclusters produced at low processing temperatures

“…For example, for amorphous Si nanoclusters annealed at 400 1C and doped with increasing concentrations of neodymium, we found that the PL intensity from the a-Si nanoclusters decreased monotonically while the Nd bands first grew in intensity and subsequently decreased, presumably due to Nd-Nd interactions. We have previously reported identical behavior in the case of erbium ions interacting with these amorphous Si clusters [25]. These observations show that the transfer mechanism from the amorphous clusters to the rare-earth ions is analogous to the much-debated siliconnanocrystal-to-erbium transfer mechanism.…”

“…The standard 4 I 11/2 -4 I 15/2 and 4 I 13/2 -4 I 15/2 bands at 980 and 1535 nm were observed for Er-doped nanoclusters, and for the case of Nd-doping, the complete set of emission bands centered at 800, 900, 1100, and 1350 nm were observed. This luminescence has been described in our recent papers [4,25]. In the case of Yb, the 2 F 5/2 -2 F 7/2 transition occurs in the PL spectrum at a wavelength of 980 nm, on the longwavelength side of the broad nanocluster luminescence band.…”

Luminescence of Nd-enriched silicon nanoparticle glasses

“…Indeed, we have demonstrated the existence of amorphous Si-rich clusters in SiO processed at 500°C [11], and that the presence of these clusters is responsible for the broad PL band in the visible part of the spectrum [12]. Of particular importance is the fact that effective Nd emission can be obtained at temperatures as low as 400°C, which makes trial device fabrication considerably easier.…”

Erbium-Doped Silicon-Rich Oxide Waveguides

“…The synthesis of Er:SiO films has been described in detail elsewhere [10]. Briefly, thin films of SiO were deposited by thermal evaporation of bulk SiO from a baffled box source.…”

“…Roberts et al [9] previously investigated Er-doped SiO, reporting host absorption mediated excitation of the Er ions and achievement of population inversion. We have studied Er:SiO films deposited using a co-evaporation technique [10], and found luminescence yield was optimized by annealing at ~500 o C to produce a high density (~2x10 19 cm -3 ) of amorphous SiNC approximately 2.5 to 3 nm in diameter.…”