Soft-x-ray emission spectroscopy study of the electronic structure of nonstoichiometric silicon nitride

Abstract
Soft-x-ray emission spectroscopy was used to investigate the electronic structure of nonstoichiometric silicon nitride samples of different compositions. The Si L23 x-ray emission spectra from these samples are presented and interpreted using a two-phase linear superposition model for the valence-band region. We assumed a model for the valence-band edge and for the emission in the gap region due to trap states and the Si 2p core exciton. The results obtained from these fits are compared with relevant models and other experiments.