Enhancement of the photoluminescence of silicon oxide defect states by combining silicon oxide with silicon nanowires

Abstract

The authors show an efficient room-temperature visible photoluminescence source obtained by combining silicon nanowires (SiNWs) and silicon oxide (SiO2) defect states. The SiNWs are synthesized by a Vapor-Liquid-Solid mechanism and then covered by SiO2 deposited by standard deposition techniques. SiNW samples have been observed by scanning electron microscopy. The photoluminescence spectra of SiO2/SiNWs samples exhibit a blue-green-light emission centered at 500 nm attributed to the carrier recombination at oxygen relative defects at the SiNWs/SiO2 interface and defect centers in the SiO2 layer. Such structures are very promising for optoelectronic devices in order to achieve an efficient silicon-based source under electrical injection.