The structural and luminescence properties of porous silicon

TLDR

A large amount of work worldwide has been directed toward understanding the fundamental characteristics of porous Si, especially after the 1990 demonstration that highly porous material can emit efficient visible photoluminescence at room temperature, leading to in‑depth scrutiny of its structural, optical, and electronic properties. This review surveys the work on porous Si and details the level of understanding achieved. The review compiles and analyzes studies on porous Si to assess progress in understanding its properties. The key importance of crystalline Si nanostructures in determining the behaviour of porous Si is highlighted, and the fabrication of solid‑state electroluminescent devices is a prominent goal of many studies, with impressive progress described.

Abstract

A large amount of work world-wide has been directed towards obtaining an understanding of the fundamental characteristics of porous Si. Much progress has been made following the demonstration in 1990 that highly porous material could emit very efficient visible photoluminescence at room temperature. Since that time, all features of the structural, optical and electronic properties of the material have been subjected to in-depth scrutiny. It is the purpose of the present review to survey the work which has been carried out and to detail the level of understanding which has been attained. The key importance of crystalline Si nanostructures in determining the behaviour of porous Si is highlighted. The fabrication of solid-state electroluminescent devices is a prominent goal of many studies and the impressive progress in this area is described.