Effects of PCBM concentration on the electrical properties of the Au/P3HT:PCBM/n-Si (MPS) Schottky barrier diodes

In this study, the gold/poly(3-hexylthiophene):[6,6]-phenyl C61 butyric acid methyl ester/n-type silicon (Au/P3HT:PCBM/n-Si) metal–polymer–semiconductor (MPS) Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) were investigated in terms of the effects of PCBM concentration on the electrical parameters. The forward and reverse bias current–voltage (I–V) characteristics of the Au/P3HT:PCBM/n-Si MPS SBDs fabricated by using the different P3HT:PCBM mass ratios were studied in the dark, at room temperature. The main electrical parameters, such as ideality factor (n), barrier height (Φ_B0), series resistance (R_s), shunt resistance (R_sh), and density of interface states (N_ss) were determined from I–V characteristics for the different P3HT:PCBM mass ratios (2:1, 6:1 and 10:1) used diodes. The values of n, R_s, Φ_B0, and N_ss were reduced, while the carrier mobility and current were increased, by increasing the PCBM concentration in the P3HT:PCBM organic blend layer. The ideal values of electrical parameters were obtained for 2:1 P3HT:PCBM mass ratio used diode. This shows that the electrical properties of MPS diodes strongly depend on the PCBM concentration of the P3HT:PCBM organic layer. Moreover, increasing the PCBM concentration in P3HT:PCBM organic blend layer improves the quality of the Au/P3HT:PCBM/n-Si (MPS) SBDs which enables the fabrication of high-quality electronic and optoelectronic devices.     

The analysis of the electrical characteristics and interface state densities of Re/n-type Si Schottky barrier diodes at room temperature

The main electrical characteristics of current-voltage (I-V) and capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements at room temperature of the Re/n-type Si Schottky barrier diodes prepared by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) method have been examined. The values of the basic electrical properties such as forward saturation current (I_o), ideality factors (n), barrier heights (Ф_bo), rectification ratio (RR) and series resistances (R_S) were obtained from I-V and C-V measurements using different calculation methods. At low voltages (V ≤ 0.3 V), the electrical conduction was formed to take place by thermionic emission, whereas at high voltages (V > 0.3 V), a space charge limited conduction mechanism was shown. Furthermore, the interface state densities (N_SS) as a function of energy distribution (E_SS- E_V) was obtained from the I-V data by taking into account the bias dependence of the effective barrier height (Φ_b) for the Re/n-type Si Schottky barrier diodes.     

Electrical characterization of current conduction in Au/TiO2/n-Si at wide temperature range

In this study, we have examined Au/TiO₂/n-Si Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs), in order to interpret in detail the experimental observed non-ideal current–voltage–temperature (I–V–T) characteristics. I–V characteristics were measured in the wide temperature range of 80–400 K. TiO₂ was deposited on n-Si substrate by reactive magnetron sputtering. The zero-bias barrier height (ϕ_B0) and ideality factor (n) show strong temperature dependence. While n decreases, ϕ_B0 increases with increasing temperature. Experimental results show that the current across the SBDs may be greatly influenced by the existence of Schottky barrier height (SBH) inhomogeneity. These temperature behaviors have been explained on the basis of the thermionic emission (TE) theory with Gaussian distribution (GD) of the barrier heights (BHs) due to BH inhomogeneities at metal–semiconductor (M/S) interface. From this assumptions, obtaining Richardson constant value of the A^* 121.01 A/cm² K² is perfect agreement with the theoretical value of 120 A/cm² K² for n-type Si. Hence, behaviors of the forward-bias I–V characteristics of the Au/TiO₂/n-Si (SBDs) can be successfully explained on the basis of a TE mechanism with a double Gaussian distribution of the BHs.     

Interface control and photovoltaic properties of n-type silicon/metal junction by organic dye

The electronic parameters and photovoltaic properties of the Au/methylene blue/n-Si diodes were investigated by current-voltage and capacitance-conductance-frequency techniques. The diode exhibits a non-ideal behavior due the series resistance, organic layer and oxide layer. The barrier height (1.04 eV) of the Au/methylene blue/n-Si is higher than that of Au/n-Si Schottky diode (0.83 eV) due to an excess barrier formed by organic layer. The interface state density of the diode was determined using a conductance technique and was found to be 3.25 × 10¹² eV⁻¹ cm⁻². The diode shows a photovoltaic behavior with a maximum open circuit voltage V_oc of 0.23 V and short-circuit current I_sc of 20.8 μA under 100 mW/cm². It is evaluated that Au/methylene blue/n-Si is an organic-on-inorganic photodiode with the obtained electronic parameters and methylene blue organic dye controls the interface and electrical properties of conventional metal/n-type silicon junction.     

Effect of series resistance on the electrical characteristics and interface state energy distributions of Sn/p-Si (MS) Schottky diodes

In this study, electrical characteristics of the Sn/p-type Si (MS) Schottky diodes have been investigated by current-voltage (I-V) and capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements at room temperature. The barrier height obtained from C-V measurement is higher than obtained from I-V measurement and this discrepancy can be explained by introducing a spatial distribution of barrier heights due to barrier height inhomogeneities, which are available at the nanostructure Sn/p-Si interface. A modified Norde’s function combined with conventional forward I-V method was used to extract the parameters including barrier height (Φ_b) and the series resistance (R_S). The barrier height and series resistance obtained from Norde’s function was compared with those from Cheung functions. In addition, the interface-state density (N_SS) as a function of energy distribution (E_SS-E_V) was extracted from the forward-bias I-V measurements by taking into account the bias dependence of the effective barrier height (Φ_b) and series resistance (R_S) for the Schottky diodes. While the interface-state density (N_SS) calculated without taking into account series resistance (R_S) has increased exponentially with bias from 4.235 × 10¹² cm⁻²eV⁻¹ in (E_SS - 0.62) eV to 2.371 × 10¹³ cm⁻²eV⁻¹ in (E_SS - 0.39) eV of p-Si, the N_SS obtained taking into account the series resistance has increased exponentially with bias from of 4.235 × 10¹² to 1.671 × 10¹³ cm⁻²eV⁻¹ in the same interval. This behaviour is attributed to the passivation of the p-doped Si surface with the presence of thin interfacial insulator layer between the metal and semiconductor.     

The temperature dependent analysis of Au/TiO2 (rutile)/n-Si (MIS) SBDs using current–voltage–temperature (I–V–T) characteristics

In this study, the main electrical parameters of Au/TiO₂(rutile)/n-Si Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) were analyzed by using current–voltage–temperature (I–V–T) characteristics in the temperature range 200–380 K. Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) thin film was deposited on a polycrystalline n-type Silicon (Si) substrate using the DC magnetron sputtering system at 200 °C. In order to improve the crystal quality deposited film was annealed at 900 °C in air atmosphere for phase transition from amorphous to rutile phase. The barrier height (Φ_b) and ideality factor (n) were calculated from I–V characteristics. An increase in the value of Φ_b and a decrease in n with increasing temperature were observed. The values of Φ_b and n for Au/TiO₂(rutile)/n-Si SBDs ranged from 0.57 eV and 3.50 (at 200 K) to 0.82 eV and 1.90 (at 380 K), respectively. In addition, series resistance (R_s) and Φ_b values of MIS SBDs were determined by using Cheung's and Norde's functions. Cheung's plots are obtained from the donward concave curvature region in the forward bias semi-logarithmic I–V curves originated from series resistance. Norde's function is easily used to obtain series resistance as a function of temperature due to current counduction mechanism which is dominated by thermionic emission (TE). The obtained results have been compared with each other and experimental results show that R_s values exhibit an unusual behavior that it increases with increasing temperature.     

Electrical characteristics of Au/<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-GaAs structures with thin and thick SiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> dielectric layer

The aim of this study, to explain effects of the SiO₂ insulator layer thickness on the electrical properties of Au/n-GaAs Shottky barrier diodes (SBDs). Thin (60 Å) and thick (250 Å) SiO₂ insulator layers were deposited on n-type GaAs substrates using the plasma enganced chemical vapour deposition technique. The current-voltage (I–V) and capacitance-voltage (C-V) characteristics have been carried out at room temperature. The main electrical parameters, such as ideality factor (n), zero-bias barrier height (? _Bo ), series resistance (R _s ), leakage current, and interface states (N _ss ) for Au/SiO₂/n-GaAs SBDs have been investigated. Surface morphologies of the SiO₂ dielectric layer was analyzed using atomic force microscopy. The results show that SiO₂ insulator layer thickness very affects the main electrical parameters. Au/n-GaAs SBDs with thick SiO₂ insulator layer have low leakage current level, small ideality factor, and low interface states. Thus, Au/n-GaAs SBDs with thick SiO₂ insulator layer shows better diode characteristics than other.     

A detailed comparative study on the main electrical parameters of Au/n-Si and Au/PVA:Zn/n-Si Schottky barrier diodes

We have fabricated Au/n-Si and Au/PVA:Zn/n-Si Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) to investigate the effect of organic interfacial layer on the main electrical characteristics. Zn doped poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA:Zn) was successfully deposited on n-Si substrate by using the electrospinning system and surface morphology of PVA:Zn was presented by SEM images. The current–voltage (I–V) characteristics of these SBDs have been investigated at room temperature. The experimental results show that interfacial layer enhances the device performance in terms of ideality factor (n), zero-bias barrier height (Φ_B0), series resistance (R_s), and shunt resistance (R_sh) with values of 1.38, 0.75 eV, 97.64 Ω, and 203 MΩ whereas those of Au/n-Si SBD are found as 1.65, 0.62 eV, 164.15 Ω and 0.597 MΩ, respectively. Also, this interfacial layer at metal/semiconductor (M/S) interface leads to a decrease in the magnitude of leakage current and density of interface states (N_ss). The values of N_ss range from 1.36×10¹² at E_c—0.569 eV to 1.35×10¹³ eV^?1 cm^?2 at E_c—0.387 eV for Au/PVA:Zn/n-Si SBD and 3.34×10¹² at E_c—0.560 eV to 1.35×10¹³ eV^?1 cm^?2 at E_c—0.424 eV for Au/n-Si SBD. The analysis of experimental results reveals that the existence of PVA:Zn interfacial layer improves the performance of such devices.     

Electrical and photovoltaic properties of an organic-inorganic heterojunction based on a BODIPY dye

An organic-inorganic heterojunction based on a BODIPY dyes has been produced by forming dye thin film on n-Si. The electrical parameters of the structure have been investigated by current-voltage (I-V) and capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements. The ideality factor, the barrier height and the series resistance values of the diode have been calculated as 2.43, 0.84 eV, and about 1.3 kΩ, respectively. The diode behaves as a non-ideal diode because of the series resistance and interface layer. The barrier height value obtained from I-V measurement has been compared with one from C-V measurement. Moreover, it has been seen that the diode is highly sensitive to the light and the reverse bias current increases about 1 × 10⁴ times at −1 V under 100 mW/cm² and AM1.5 illumination condition. The short photocurrent density (J_sc) and the open circuit voltage (V_oc), the fill factor (FF) and power conversion efficiency (η) have been determined as 3.78 mA/cm², 327 mV, 0.28 and 0.48 %, respectively.     

The effects of surface states and series resistance on the performance of Au/SnO2/n-Si and Al/SnO2/p-Si (MIS) Schottky barrier diodes

We have fabricated two types of Schottky barrier(SBDs),Au/SnO₂/n-Si (MIS1) and Al/SnO₂/p-Si (MIS2), to investigate the surface (N_ss) and series resistance (R_s) effect on main electrical parameters such as zero-bias barrier height (Φ_Bo) and ideality factor (n) for these SBDs. The forward and reverse bias current–voltage (I–V) characteristics of them were measured at 200 and 295 K, and experimental results were compared with each other. At temperatures of 200 and 295 K, Φ_Bo, n, N_ss and R_s for MIS1 Schottky diodes (SDs) ranged from 0.393 to 0.585 eV, 5.70 to 4.75, 5.42×10¹³ to 4.27×10¹³ eV^?1 cm^?2 and 514 to 388 Ω, respectively, whereas for MIS2 they ranged from 0.377 to 0.556 eV, 3.58 to 2.1, 1.25×10¹⁴ to 3.30×10¹⁴ eV^?1 cm^?2 and 312 to 290 Ω, respectively. The values of n for two types of SBDs are rather than unity and this behavior has been attributed to the particular distribution of N_ss and interfacial insulator layer at the metal/semiconductor interface. In addition, the temperature dependence energy density distribution profiles of N_ss for both MIS1 and MIS2 SBDs were obtained from the forward bias I–V characteristics by taking into account the bias dependence of effective barrier height (Φ_e) and R_s. Experimental results show that both N_ss and R_s values should be taken into account in the forward bias I–V characteristics. It has been concluded that the p-type SBD (MIS2) shows a lower barrier height (BH), lower R_s, n and N_ss compared to n-type SBD (MIS1), which results in higher current at both 200 and 295 K.     

Controlling the electrical characteristics of Au/n-Si structures by interfacial insulator layer

Admittance (C–V and G/ω–V) measurements of Au/n-Si (metal–semiconductor, MS) and Au/SnO₂/n-Si (metal–insulator–semiconductor, MIS) structures were carried out between 1 kHz and 1 MHz at room temperature to investigate the interfacial insulator layer effect on the electrical characteristics of Au/n-Si structures. Experimental results showed that MIS structure's capacitance (C) values, unlike those of MS structure, became stable especially at high frequencies in the accumulation region. Also, the insulator layer caused structure's shunt resistance (R_sh) to increase. It was found that series resistance (R_s) is more effective in the accumulation region at high frequencies after the correction was applied to C and G/ω data to eliminate the R_s effect. The density of interface states (D_is) was obtained using Hill–Coleman method, D_is values MIS structure was obtained smaller than those of MS structure. Results indicate that interfacial insulator layer brings about some improvements in electrical characteristics of Au/n-Si structures.     

The stability of electrical characteristics of Ti/n-Si/Ag,Ti/n-Si/Cu and Ti/n-Si/AgCu diodes prepared under the same conditions with respect to increasing aging time

The purpose of this study is to fabricate Ti/n-Si/Ag, Ti/n-Si/Cu and Ti/n-Si/AgCu Schottky type diodes and to investigate the effects of aging time on the diode parameters such as ideality factor, barrier height, series resistance, interface state density and rectification ratio. High purity titanium (Ti) metal was deposited on the back side of the n-Si semiconductor and then the Ti/n-Si junction was annealed at 420 °C in nitrogen atmosphere. This junction showed ohmic behavior. To fabricate rectifier contacts, Ag, Cu metals and AgCu alloy have been evaporated on the other polished surface of n-Si with Ti ohmic contact. Ag and Cu ratios in the AgCu alloy which are used in the process of preparing the Schottky contact were taken in equal weights. Thus, Ti/n-Si/Ag, Ti/n-Si/Cu and Ti/n-Si/AgCu Schottky type diodes were prepared under the same conditions. The current-voltage (I-V) characterization of Ti/n-Si/Ag, Ti/n-Si/Cu and Ti/n-Si/AgCu diodes were immediately made at room temperature in dark conditions. To investigate the effect of aging time, the I-V measurements of the diodes have been repeated after 1, 7, 15, 30 and 90 days. Characteristic parameters of the diode were calculated from the I-V measurements which are taken with respect to aging time. The results were compared. From these results, it can clearly be seen that the electrical characteristics of diode which is made from AgCu alloy are more stable than other two diodes.     

Modification of metal/semiconductor junctions by self-assembled monolayer organic films

Two new metal/molecule/semiconductor contacts, Au/n-Si/TDA/Au and Au/p-Si/ODM/Au, were fabricated to understand effect of organic compounds, tridecylamine and octadecylmercaptan self-assembled monolayer (SAM) films, on electrical charge transport properties of the metal/semiconductor junctions. The morphology of the organic monolayers deposited on Si substrates was investigated by atomic force microscopy. The molecular coverage of ODM deposited on p-Si is poorer than that of TDA on n-Si substrate. The ideality factors of the p-Si/ODM and n-Si/TDA diodes were found to be 1.66 and 1.48, respectively. The electrical results show that the tridecylamine monolayer passivated junction has a lower ideality factor. The ideality factor indicates clear dependence on two different type functional groups R-SH (Thiol) and R-NH₂ (Amin) groups and it increases with different functional groups of organic molecule. The barrier height φ_b value of the n-Si/TDA diode is smaller than that of p-Si/ODM diode, as a result of chain length of the SAM organic molecules. The interface state density D_it values of the diodes were determined using conductance technique. The n-Si/TDA diode has the smaller interface state density according to p-Si/ODM diode.We have evaluated that the organic molecules control the electronic parameters of metal/semiconductor diodes and thus, organic modification helps to get one step closer towards to new organic assisted silicon based microelectronic devices.     

The determination of the interface-state density distribution from the capacitance-frequency measurements in Au/n-Si schottky barrier diodes

The Au/n-Si Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) with 200-μm (sample D200) and 400-μm (sample D400) bulk thicknesses have been fabricated. The ideality factor and the barrier height have been calculated from the forward-bias current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of D200 and D400 SBDs. The energy distribution of the interface states and relaxation time are found from the capacitance-frequency (C-f) characteristics. The density of interface state and relaxation times have a (nearly constant) slow exponential rise with bias in the range of E_c −0.77 and E_c −0.47 eV from the midgap toward the bottom of the conductance band. Furthermore, the energy distribution of the interface states obtained from C-f characteristics has been compared with that obtained from the forward-bias I-V characteristics.     

Electrical and interfacial properties of Au/P3HT:PCBM/n-Si Schottky barrier diodes at room temperature

In this study, a gold/poly(3-hexylthiophene):[6,6]-phenyl C61 butyric acid methyl ester/n-type silicon (Au/P3HT:PCBM/n-Si) metal-polymer-semiconductor (MPS) Schottky barrier diode (SBD) was fabricated. To accomplish this, a spin-coating system and a thermal evaporation were used for preparation of a P3HT/PCBM layer system and for deposition of metal contacts, respectively. The forward- and reverse-bias current–voltage (I–V) characteristics of the MPS SBD at room temperature were studied to investigate its main electrical parameters such as ideality factor (n), barrier height (Φ_B), series resistance (R_s), shunt resistance (R_sh), and density of interface states (N_ss). The I–V characteristics have nonlinear behavior due to the effect of R_s, resulting in an n value (3.09) larger than unity. Additionally, it was found that n, Φ_B, R_s, R_sh, and N_ss have strong correlation with the applied bias. All results suggest that the P3HT/PCBM interfacial organic layer affects the Au/P3HT:PCBM/n-Si MPS SBD, and that R_s and N_ss are the main electrical parameters that affect the Au/P3HT:PCBM/n-Si MPS SBD. Furthermore, a lower N_ss compared with that of other types of MPS SBDs in the literature was achieved by using the P3HT/PCBM layer. This lowering shows that high-quality electronic and optoelectronic devices may be fabricated by using the Au/P3HT:PCBM/n-Si MPS SBD.     

The effect of Mo-doped PVC+TCNQ interfacial layer on the electrical properties of Au/PVC+TCNQ/p-Si structures at room temperature

The effect of Mo-doped and undoped PVC+TCNQ interfacial layer on electrical characteristics of a Au/PVC+TCNQ/p-Si structure was investigated using current–voltage (I–V), capacitance–voltage (C–V) and conductance–voltage (G/ω–V) measurements at room temperature. The energy dependent interface states density (N_ss) was obtained from the forward bias I–V data by taking into account voltage dependent effective barrier height (Φ_e) for two diodes, i.e. with and without Mo doping. The voltage dependent resistance (R_i) of structures was also obtained using Ohm׳s law and the method of Nicollian and Brews for the diodes. In order to eliminate the effect of series resistance (R_s), C and G/ω at high frequency values were corrected. N_ss and R_s values were compared between the diodes and experimental results showed that N_ss and R_s values of the Mo-doped PVC+TCNQ structure are considerably lower than those of the undoped PVC+TCNQ structure. The other important parameters such as ideality factor (n), reverse saturation current (I_s), zero-bias barrier heights (Φ_Bo) and R_s were obtained from forward bias I–V data by using I–V, Cheung and Norde methods. Experimental results confirmed that the Mo-doped (PVC+TCNQ) layer considerably improved the performance of the Au/PVC+TCNQ/p-Si structure.     

Anomalous Peak in the Forward-Bias <Emphasis Type="Italic">C</Emphasis>–<Emphasis Type="Italic">V</Emphasis> Plot and Temperature-Dependent Behavior of Au/PVA (Ni,Zn-doped)/<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-Si(111) Structures

In this study, the temperature-dependent mean density of interface states (N_SS)(N_{\rm SS}) and series resistance (R_S)(R_{\rm S}) profiles of Au/PVA (Ni,Zn-doped)/n-Si(111) structures are determined using current–voltage (I−V) and admittance spectroscopy [capacitance–voltage (C–V) and conductance–voltage G/ω–V] methods. The other main electronic parameters such as zero-bias barrier height (F_B0)(\Phi_{{\rm B}0}), ideality factor (n), and doping concentration (N _D) are also obtained as a function of temperature. Experimental results show that the values of F_B0\Phi_{\rm{B}0}, n, R _S, and N _SS are strongly temperature dependent. The values of F_B0\Phi_{\rm{B}0} and R _S increase with increasing temperature, while those of n and N _SS decrease. The C–V plots of Au/PVA (Ni,Zn-doped)/n-Si(111) structures exhibit anomalous peaks in forward bias (depletion region) at each temperature, and peak positions shift towards negative bias with increasing temperature. The peak value of C has been found to be strongly dependent on N _SS, R _S, and temperature. The experimental data confirm that the values of N _SS, R _S, temperature, and the thickness and composition of the interfacial polymer layer are important factors that influence the main electrical parameters of the device.     

The effect of frequency and temperature on capacitance/conductance–voltage (C/G–V) characteristics of Au/n-GaAs Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs)

The capacitance–voltage (C–V) and conductance–voltage (G/ω–V) characteristics of the Au/n-GaAs Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) have been investigated for 10, 100 and 500 kHz at 80 and 280 K. To evaluate the reason of non-ideal behavior in C–V and G/ω–V plots, the measured C and G/ω values were corrected by taking into accounts series resistance effect. Experimental results show that the values of C and G/ω were found to be a strong function of interface states (N_ss) at inverse and depletion regions especially at low frequencies, but R_s is effective only at the accumulation region especially at high frequencies. Such behavior of the C and G/ω values may be attributed to an increase in polarization especially at low frequencies and the existence of N_ss or dislocations between metal and semiconductor. It can be concluded that the increase in C and G/ω at low frequencies especially at weak and depletion regions results from the existence of N_ss. The values of doping concentration (N_d) and barrier height (BH) between metal and semiconductor were also obtained from the linear part of high frequency (500 kHz) C⁻² vs. V plots at 80 and 280 K, respectively.     

Analysis of interface states and series resistance of MIS Schottky diodes using the current-voltage (I-V) characteristics

The purpose of this paper is to analyze interface states in Al/SiO₂/p-Si (MIS) Schottky diodes and determine the effect of SiO₂ surface preparation on the interface state energy distribution. The current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of MIS Schottky diodes were measured at room temperature. From the I-V characteristics of the MIS Schottky diode, ideality factor (n) and barrier height (Φ_B) values of 1.537 and 0.763 eV, respectively, were obtained from a forward bias I-V plot. In addition, the density of interface states (N_ss) as a function of (E_ss-E_v) was extracted from the forward bias I-V measurements by taking into account both the bias dependence of the effective barrier height (Φ_e), n and R_s for the MIS Schottky diode. The diode shows non-ideal I-V behaviour with ideality factor greater than unity. In addition, the values of series resistance (R_s) were determined using Cheung’s method. The I-V characteristics confirmed that the distribution of N_ss, R_s and interfacial insulator layer are important parameters that influence the electrical characteristics of MIS Schottky diodes.     

Interface States of Fe3O4/Si Interfacial Structure and Effect of Magnetic Field

Electronic transport across Fe₃O₄/Si interfacial structure has been studied with and without the application of magnetic fields along the interfacial plane, up to 8 kG. Current–voltage (I–V) and capacitance–voltage (C–V) characteristics across the junction have been recorded for various bias voltages, frequency and magnetic field. The interfacial parameters, such as, ideality factor (n), barrier height (? _B0), series resistance (R _S) and donor concentration (N _D) etc. have been estimated from the characteristics. The interface state density (N _SS) and their energy distribution have been estimated by using the interfacial parameters. It has been observed that the N _SS decreases as the energy increases from the conduction band edge towards the valence band. A magnetoresistance (MR) of ～40% has been estimated from the I–V–H data along with its variation with magnetic field. The change of interface state density with the magnetic field shows a similar variation as MR versus H. From the observed variations, the interface states seem to be related to electronic spins. The possibility of an interfacial magnetic silicide or magnetic ions in the interfacial region has been invoked for the observed interface states.