(Invited) Characterization of Novel Nanostructured Terbium Doped Oxygen Rich Silicon Oxide for Photonic Applications

摘要

Rare earth doped silicon-based thin films can be used for light emitting applications, where the control of dopant type and concentration plays a significant role in the enhancement of optical functionalities. In this work, nanostructured terbium (Tb) doped oxygen-rich silicon oxide (ORSO) samples were fabricated using a novel fabrication technique: integrated sputtering and plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). The Tb dopant concentration in the ORSO host matrix was varied from 0.5 at. % to 17 at. % and post-deposition thermal annealing was performed in a wide range of temperatures in a N_2 atmosphere. In addition, the presence of defects, one of the general physical problems limiting the emission efficiency of rare earth doped silicon-based materials, was investigated using a combination of photoluminescence measurements and positron annihilation spectroscopy (PAS).