Infrared spectroscopy of Er-containing amorphous silicon thin films

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Abstract
Hydrogenated amorphous SiEr ( a -SiEr:H) thin films were deposited by cosputtering. Oxygen and nitrogen were employed as impurity enhancers of Er 3+ emission of light at 1540 nm, and photoluminescence, infrared absorption, and Raman spectroscopies were performed as a function of various annealing temperatures. As-deposited O-contaminated and N-doped a -SiEr:H samples exhibit Er 3+ related photoluminescence, low intensity at room temperature, and maximum intensity after thermal annealing at ∼500 ° C . In addition to the enhancement of the Er 3+ emission of light, thermal annealing provokes the outdiffusion of hydrogen bonded to silicon atoms. The experimental data suggest that both hydrogen and thermal treatments improve the Er 3+ related photoluminescence by decreasing the occurrence of nonradiative processes.