Hydrogen passivation of laser-induced defects in germanium

Abstract
The passivation by hydrogen of acceptor level defects (Ev +0.17 eV, Ev +0.36 eV) caused by the laser irradiation of single crystal n-type Ge (ND −NA =1.5×1016 cm−3) has been observed using deep level transient spectroscopy. The point defects are neutralized by a 10-min exposure to atomic hydrogen at 150 °C; using conventional thermal annealing, a 2-h heat treatment in H2 at 280 °C is required to produce the same effect.