Investigation of deep level defects in electron irradiated indium arsenide quantum dots embedded in a gallium arsenide matrix

Gallium arsenide diodes with and without indium arsenide quantum dots were electron irradiated to investigate radiation induced defects. Baseline and quantum dot gallium arsenide pn-junction diodes were characterized by capacitance–voltage measurements, and deep level transient spectroscopy. Carrier accumulation was observed in the gallium arsenide quantum dot sample at the designed depth for the quantum dots via capacitance–voltage measurements. Prior to irradiation, a defect 0.84 eV below the conduction band (E_C – 0.84 eV) was observed in the baseline sample which is consistent with the native EL2 defect seen in gallium arsenide. After 1 MeV electron irradiation three new defects were observed in the baseline sample, labeled as E3 (E_C – 0.25 eV), E4 (E_C – 0.55 eV), and E5 (E_C – 0.76 eV), consistent with literature reports of electron irradiated gallium arsenide. Prior to irradiation, the addition of quantum dots appeared to have introduced defect levels at E_C – 0.21, E_C – 0.38, and E_C – 0.75 eV denoted as QD–DX1, QD–DX2, and QD–EL2 respectively. In the quantum dot sample after 1 MeV electron irradiation, QD–E3 (E_C – 0.28 eV), QD–E4 (E_C – 0.49 eV), and QD–EL2 (E_C – 0.72 eV) defects, similar to the baseline sample, were observed, although the trap density was dissimilar to that of the baseline sample. The quantum dot sample showed a higher density of the QD–E4 defect and a lower density of QD–E3, while the QD–EL2 defect seemed to be unaffected by electron irradiation. These findings suggest that the quantum dot sample may be more radiation tolerant to the E3 defect as compared to the baseline sample.     

8 MeV electron beam induced modifications in the structural,optical and electrical properties of Al doped ZnO thin film

The influence of high energy (8 MeV) electron irradiation, with different dose rates (0 kGy, 1 kGy, 5 kGy, 10 kGy), on the structural, optical and electrical properties of sol-gel spin coated Al-doped ZnO (AZO) thin films have been studied. The X-ray diffraction curve displays the coating of c-axis oriented films under the state of compressive stress. A further analysis reveals that the interstitial sites were occupied by the Al in AZO upon electron irradiation. With the increase in irradiation dose, the energy gap of the film shows a redshift due to the enhanced localized states in the band structure. An increment in the values of refractive index of the films after irradiation is attributed to their enhanced optical density. Steady state luminescence spectra reveal the presence of zinc interstitial and oxygen interstitial defects in the irradiated film. Time-resolved photoluminescence (PL) measurement shows that the dominant defect related recombination mechanism in the irradiated films is arising due to the increased dangling bonds and defect related transitions. The increase in sheet resistance upon electron irradiation is attributed to decreasing carrier concentration in the film. The irradiated AZO film may be useful for space applications and in the radiation environment.     

Kinetics of the accumulation of radiation defects during the high-dose electron irradiation of Pb1−x SnxSe alloys

The kinetics of the variation of the electron concentration in electron-irradiated (T≈300 K, E=6 MeV, Φ⩽7.1×10¹⁷ cm⁻²) n-Pb_1−x Sn_xSe (x=0.2 and 0.25) alloys in the vicinity of the metal-insulator transition induced by electron irradiation are investigated. The principal parameters of the energy spectrum of the irradiated alloys are determined by comparing the experimental and theoretical dependences of the electron concentration on fluence. It is shown that agreement between the theoretical and experimental data is possible only under the assumption that the defect production rate decreases with increasing fluence, and a model, within which the main defect formation mechanism in the alloys investigated is the formation of complexes of primary radiation defects with structural defects typical of the as-grown crystals, is proposed. Fiz. Tekh. Poluprovodn. 32, 1409–1413 (December 1998)     

Electrical characterization of defects introduced during metallization processes in n-type germanium

We have studied the defects introduced in n-type Ge during electron beam deposition (EBD) and sputter deposition (SD) by deep-level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) and evaluated their influence on the rectification quality of Schottky contacts by current–voltage (I–V) measurements. I–V measurements demonstrated that the quality of sputter-deposited diodes are poorer than those of diodes formed by EBD. The highest quality Schottky diodes were formed by resistive evaporation that introduced no defects in Ge. In the case of EBD of metals the main defect introduced during metallization was the V–Sb complex, also introduced during by electron irradiation. The concentrations of the EBD-induced defects depend on the metal used: metals that required a higher electron beam intensity to evaporate, e.g. Ru, resulted in larger defect concentrations than metals requiring lower electron beam intensity, e.g. Au. All the EBD-induced defects can be removed by annealing at temperatures above 325 °C. Sputter deposition introduces several electrically active defects near the surface of Ge. All these defects have also been observed after high-energy electron irradiation. However, the V–Sb centre introduced by EBD was not observed after sputter deposition. Annealing at 250 °C in Ar removed all the defects introduced during sputter deposition.     

The influence of high energy electron irradiation on the Schottky barrier height and the Richardson constant of Ni/4H-SiC Schottky diodes

The influence of high energy electron (HEE) irradiation from a Sr-90 radio-nuclide on n-type Ni/4H–SiC samples of doping density 7.1×10¹⁵ cm⁻³ has been investigated over the temperature range 40–300 K. Current–voltage (I–V), capacitance–voltage (C–V) and deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) were used to characterize the devices before and after irradiation at a fluence of 6×10¹⁴ electrons-cm⁻². For both devices, the I–V characteristics were well described by thermionic emission (TE) in the temperature range 120–300 K, but deviated from TE theory at temperature below 120 K. The current flowing through the interface at a bias of 2.0 V from pure thermionic emission to thermionic field emission within the depletion region with the free carrier concentrations of the devices decreased from 7.8×10¹⁵ to 6.8×10¹⁵ cm⁻³ after HEE irradiation. The modified Richardson constants were determined from the Gaussian distribution of the barrier height across the contact and found to be 133 and 163 A cm⁻² K⁻² for as-deposited and irradiated diodes, respectively. Three new defects with energies 0.22, 0.40 and 0.71 eV appeared after HEE irradiation. Richardson constants were significantly less than the theoretical value which was ascribed to a small active device area.     

Electrically active defects induced by hydrogen and helium implantations in Ge

Results of a study of electrically active defects induced in Sb-doped Ge crystals by implantations of hydrogen and helium ions (protons and alpha particles) with energies in the range from 500 keV to 1 MeV and doses in the range 1×10¹⁰–1×10¹⁴ cm⁻² are presented in this work. Transformations of the defects upon post-implantation isochronal anneals in the temperature range 50–350 °C have also been studied. The results have been obtained by means of capacitance–voltage (C–V) measurements and deep-level transient spectroscopy (DLTS).It was found from an analysis of DLTS spectra that low doses (<5×10¹⁰ cm⁻²) of H and He ion implantations resulted in the introduction of damage similar to that observed after MeV electron irradiation. The Sb–vacancy complex was the dominant deep-level defect in the lightly implanted samples. After implantations with doses higher than 5×10¹⁰ cm⁻² peaks due to more complex defects were observed in the DLTS spectra. Implantations with heavy (5×10¹³ cm⁻²) doses of both H and He ions caused the formation of a sub-surface layer with a high (up to 1×10¹⁷ cm⁻³) concentration of donors. These donors were eliminated by anneals at temperatures in the range 100–200 °C. Heat treatments of the heavy proton-implanted Ge samples in the temperature range 250–300 °C resulted in the formation of shallow hydrogen-related donors, the concentration of which was the highest in a region close to the projected depth of implanted protons. The maximum peak concentration of the H-related donors was higher than 1×10¹⁵ cm⁻³ for a proton implantation dose of 1×10¹⁴ cm⁻².     

Inversion phenomenon as a result of junction damages in neutron irradiated silicon detectors

This paper concerns with integrated microscopic investigations of bipolar junction damages in silicon detectors following neutron irradiation. This phenomenon was studied by means of an advanced contact potential difference method in atomic force microscopy (AFM). The obtained results were confirmed by topographical investigations also done by AFM and electron beam induced current, installed on a conventional scanning electron microscope. The most detailed structural investigations were carried out by means of scanning tunnel microscope. It was found that in the interval of neutron fluences, Φ,9.9×10¹⁰Φ3.12×10¹⁵ n/cm² the damage to the silicon lattice structure is accumulative, from small point defects to high defect accumulations. These defects consisted of large complexes of dislocation loops and vacancies, however, in the p–n junction region, only vacancies remained. This deterioration in the junction crystalline structure, resulted in a population inversion of the free charge carriers, from n- to p-type. The novelty of this research consists of the direct correlation, found between the structural defects and the mechanical and electrical properties of the diode junction.     

Defects annealing in 4H–SiC epitaxial layer probed by low temperature photoluminescence

The thermal evolution of defects induced in 4H–SiC by multiple implantation of C ions was investigated by Low Temperature Photoluminescence in the temperature range 450–1000 K. The photoluminescence spectra show sharp luminescent lines (alphabet lines) in the wavelength range 426–440 nm upon irradiation and thermal treatment at 450 K induces the appearance of a new line at 427 nm (D_I centre). The trend shown by the luminescence lines as a function of the temperature is quite complex. The alphabet lines intensity increases up to 850 K, whereas at higher temperature decreases with an activation energy of 2.0 eV, suggesting that the defect, responsible for these lines, is the Si-vacancy. The luminescence yield of D_I centre is always increasing as a function of the temperature, with a higher slope from 750 K, suggesting a correlation to the reconfiguration and to the annealing of point defects.     

Electrical characterization of defects introduced during electron beam deposition of W Schottky contacts on n-type 4H-SiC

We have studied the defects introduced in n-type 4H-SiC during electron beam deposition (EBD) of tungsten by deep-level transient spectroscopy (DLTS). The results from current-voltage and capacitance-voltage measurements showed deviations from ideality due to damage, but were still well suited to a DLTS study. We compared the electrical properties of six electrically active defects observed in EBD Schottky barrier diodes with those introduced in resistively evaporated material on the same material, as-grown, as well as after high energy electron irradiation (HEEI). We observed that EBD introduced two electrically active defects with energies E_C – 0.42 and E_C – 0.70 eV in the 4H-SiC at and near the interface with the tungsten. The defects introduced by EBD had properties similar to defect attributed to the silicon or carbon vacancy, introduced during HEEI of 4H-SiC. EBD was also responsible for the increase in concentration of a defect attributed to nitrogen impurities (E_C – 0.10) as well as a defect linked to the carbon vacancy (E_C – 0.67). Annealing at 400 °C in Ar ambient removed these two defects introduced during the EBD.     

Interaction of α radiation with iron-doped n-type silicon

Deep-level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) measurements were carried out on low-doped n-silicon before and after irradiation with 5.48 MeV α particles at room temperature with a fluence of 10¹⁰ α particles/cm². The DLTS measurements on the samples identified three electron levels E₁, E₂ and E₃ before irradiation. The deep-levels characteristic studies include emission rate signatures, activation energies, defect concentrations and capture cross sections. It was found that all pre-existing defects decreased their amplitudes during irradiation. The decrease in activation energy of level E₃ and noticeable suppression of level E₁ was also observed after irradiation. It was clearly seen that the composite peak E₃ (combination of E₂ and E₃) was successfully resolved after irradiating with α particles. α-irradiation is seen to lead a significant suppression of the iron interstitial defect, and without causing any change in its room temperature annealing characteristics.     

Degradation of InGaAs/InP single heterojunction bipolar transistors under high energy electron irradiation

The d.c. characteristics of InGaAs/InP single heterojunction bipolar transistors (SHBTs) were studied for the first time under high energy (1 MeV) electron radiation of cumulative dose up to 5.4×10¹⁵ electrons/cm². No degradation was observed for electron doses below 10¹⁵/cm². For electron doses greater than 10¹⁵/cm² the following degradation effects were observed: (1) decrease in collector current; (2) decrease in current gain up to 50%; (3) an increase in collector saturation voltage by 0.2–0.8 V depending on base current; and (4) increase in output conductance. The degradation of collector current and current gain are thought to be due to increased recombination caused by radiation-induced defects in the base–emitter junction. The increase in collector saturation voltage is attributed to an increase in emitter contact resistance after irradiation. The increase in the avalanche multiplication in the reverse biased base–collector junction caused by radiation induced defects is believed to be responsible for increased output conductance after irradiation.     

High mobility organic field-effect transistors based on defect-free regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl)

We report on organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) prepared using defect free (100% regioregular) poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (DF-P3HT) as semiconductor and cross-linked poly(vinyl alcohol) (cr-PVA) as gate insulator. High field-effect mobility (μ_FET) of 1.2 cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹ is obtained and attributed to the absence of regioregularity defects. These transistors have transconductance of 0.35 μS and the DF-P3HT film shows larger crystallites (∼80 Å) than a highly regioregular (>98%) material (∼32 Å). Devices with increased μ_FET (2.8 cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹) could be obtained at the expense of the On-Off current ratio, which was reduced by one order of magnitude, when poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) treatment was applied to the dielectric surface. Our results suggest that the interaction of charged sites at the dielectric surface with regioregularity defects of the P3HT is an important factor degrading μ_FET even at very low concentration of regioregularity defects.     

Spin–orbital coupling induced high-field decay of magneto-electroluminescence in pristine Alq3-based organic light-emitting diodes

We explored mechanisms for the high-field (|B| > 50 mT) decay of organic magneto-electroluminescence. The organic/metal interface in pristine tris (8-hydroxyquinolinato) aluminum-based organic light-emitting diodes was modified by changing the metal cathodes and their deposition methods. The metals investigated were Al, Au, and Cu and the methods used include molecular beam deposition, thermal resistive evaporation, and electron beam evaporation (EBE), respectively. Experimental results revealed that the high-field decay can be observed at room temperature when the cathode is: (i) Cu deposited by EBE or (ii) Au deposited by any of the three deposition methods. Furthermore, this decay is different from the previously reported high-field decay that originates from triplet–triplet annihilation, triplet-charge reaction processes or Δg mechanism. We suggest that the magnetic field can increase the extent of overlap between the electron–hole recombination zone and the organic/metal interface by suppressing electron mobility. The spin–orbital coupling at the organic/metal interface consequently induces intersystem crossing to increase with magnetic field leading to the observed high-field decay.     

Effect of 6 MeV electron irradiation on electrical characteristics of the Au/n-Si/Al Schottky diode

Electron irradiation of the Au/n-Si/Al Schottky diode was performed by using 6 MeV electrons and 3 × 10¹² e⁻/cm² fluency. The current-voltage (I-V), capacitance-voltage (C-V) and capacitance-frequency (C-f) characteristics of the unirradiated and irradiated Schottky diode were analyzed. It was seen that the values of the barrier height, the series resistance, and the ideality factor increased after electron irradiation. However, there was a decrease in the leakage current with electron irradiation. The increase in the barrier height and in the series resistance values was attributed to the dopant deactivation in the near-interface region. The interface states, N_ss, have been decreased significantly after electron irradiation. This was attributed to the decrease in recombination centre and the existence of an interfacial layer. A decrease in the capacitance was observed after electron irradiation. This was attributed to decrease in the net ionized dopant concentration with electron irradiation.     

Effects of High-Energy Electron Irradiation on ZnO/Si MSM Photodetectors

ZnO/Si metal–semiconductor–metal photodetectors (MSM-PDs) were subjected to high-energy electron irradiation (HEEI) to total fluence of 2 × 10¹³ cm⁻². ZnO/Si MSM-PDs demonstrated at least 43% greater radiation resistance than similar Si devices. Room-temperature annealing of radiation damage was observed as 63% recovery of photocurrent over 47 days. The current transport mechanism for ZnO/Si MSM-PDs was dominated by space-charge-limited conduction (SCLC) with minimal effect on conduction regime due to HEEI. Analysis of photoluminescence (PL) data indicates that the radiation-induced defects are likely oxygen and zinc vacancies, i.e., (V₀⁺) and (V_Zn ^- - H ⁺ )⁰ (\hbox{V}_{\rm{Zn}}^{ - } - \hbox{H}^{ + } )^{0} , respectively.     

Radiation damage of Ge-on-Si devices

The radiation damage induced by 2-MeV electrons and 70-MeV protons in p⁺n diodes and p-channel MOS transistors, fabricated in epitaxial Ge-on-Si substrates is reported for the first time. For irradiation above 5×10¹⁵ e/cm², it is noted that both the reverse and forward current increase, and that the forward current is lower after irradiation for a forward voltage larger than about 0.5 V. The reason for this might be an increased resistivity of the Ge-on-Si substrate. For p-MOSFETs, for a 1×10¹⁶ e/cm² dose, a slight negative shift of the threshold voltage and a decrease of the drain current for input and output characteristics have been observed. In addition, g_m decreases after irradiation. The degradation of the transistor performance is thought to be due to irradiation-induced positive charges in the high-κ gate dielectric. The induced lattice defects are also mainly responsible for the leakage current increase of the irradiated diodes.     

Enhancement of Defect Production Rates in <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-Type Silicon by Hydrogen Implantation Near 270 K

Defect production behavior in hydrogen-implanted n-type silicon has been studied by varying the implantation temperature from 88 K to 303 K. Deep-level transient spectroscopy has been used to reveal electron trap spectra for Schottky diodes fabricated at room temperature after implantation. Metastable defects are observed in addition to vacancy- and hydrogen-related defects. It is found that the production rates of these defects are greatly enhanced by hydrogen implantation near 270 K. It is suggested that hydrogen plays an important role in enhancement of defect production rates, since such defect production behavior is not observed in He-implanted samples.     

Preparation and characterization of bifunctional BiOClxIy solid solutions with excellent adsorption and photocatalytic abilities for removal of organic dyes

A series of BiOCl_xI_y solid solutions with bifunctional properties was prepared by a hydrolysis method. When used as potential adsorbents for removal of dyes in wastewater, the as prepared samples exhibited the excellent adsorption and photocatalytic abilities, which indicated that the removal ability had been restored completely without centrifugal separating or other chemical desorption methods. Especially to the sample 301 prepared with a 3:1 M ratio of Cl to I, its adsorption capacity could reach nearly 5.0 mg g⁻¹ within 5 min, which was at least 3 times larger than that of the individual BiOX (ca. 1.3 mg g⁻¹), and its degradation efficiency of high concentration (20 mg L⁻¹) methyl orange (MO) was up to 100% after 50 min of visible light irradiation. The relevant characterization results revealed that not only high specific surface area but also the electron structure of interlayer could be the key factors for the high adsorption ability. The possible mechanism was also discussed.     

Selective activation of failure mechanisms in packaged double-heterostructure light emitting diodes using controlled neutron energy irradiation

This paper demonstrates the feasibility of creating specific defects in double-heterostructure AlGaAsGaAs commercial light emitting diode by neutron irradiation. Using controlled neutron energy, only one failure mechanism can be activated. Defects are located in the side of the chip and increase the leakage current driven by the well-known Pool–Frenkel effect with E_c ? E_T = 130 meV electron trap energy level. The maximal amplitude of optical spectrum also reveals a drop about 20% associated to the rise of leakage current.     

Paramagnetic Ge dangling bond type defects at (1 0 0)Si1−xGex/SiO2 interfaces (Invited Paper)

The work addresses the occurrence of Ge dangling bond type point defects at Ge_xSi_1?x/insulator interfaces as evidenced by conventional electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy. Using multifrequency ESR, we report on the observation and characterization of a first nontrigonal Ge dangling bond (DB)-type interface defect in SiO₂/(1 0 0)Ge_xSi_1?x/SiO₂/(1 0 0)Si heterostructures (0.27 ? x ? 0.93) manufactured by the condensation technique, a selective oxidation method enabling Ge enrichment of a buried epitaxial Si-rich SiGe layer. The center, exhibiting monoclinic-I (C_2v) symmetry is observed in highest densities of ～7 × 10¹² cm^?2 of Ge_xSi_1?x/SiO₂ interface for x ～ 0.7, to disappear for x outside the ]0.45–0.87[ interval, with remarkably no copresence of Si P_b-type centers. Neither are trigonal Ge DB centers observed, enabling unequivocal spectral analysis. Initial study of the defect passivation under annealing in molecular H₂ has been carried out. On the basis of all data the defect is depicted as a Ge P_b1-type center, i.e., distinct from a trigonal basic Ge P_b(0)-type center (Ge₃Ge). The modalities of the defect’s occurrence as unique interface mismatch healing defect is discussed, which may widen our understanding of interfacial DB centers in general.