INTENSE VISIBLE PHOTOLUMINESCENCE IN AMORPHOUS SIOX AND SIOX-H FIRMS PREPARED BY EVAPORATION

Visible photoluminescence (PL) can be observed in a-SiOx and a-SiOx:H alloys prepared by evaporation of SiO in ultrahigh Vacuum and under a flow of hydrogen ions, respectively. The hydrogen and oxygen bonding i s studied by infrared spectrometry. The hydrogen stability is followed by thermal desorption spectrometry experiments. The evolution of the PL with annealing treatments shows that the PL can be attributed to a quantum confinement effect in a-Si clusters embedded in the matrix of n-SiOx,. Hydrogen does not greatly contribute to the PL efficiency and to the thermal evolution of the a-Si clusters. (C) 1998 American Inst itute of Physics.