ENHANCEMENT OF THE INTENSITY OF THE SHORT-WAVELENGTH VISIBLE PHOTOLUMINESCENCE FROM SILICON-IMPLANTED SILICON-DIOXIDE FILMS CAUSED BY HYDROSTATIC-PRESSURE DURING ANNEALING

We have studied the influence of the hydrostatic pressure during annea ling on the intensity of the visible photoluminescence (PL) from therm ally grown SiO2 films irradiated with Si+ ions using double-energy imp lants at 100 and 200 keV and ion doses ranging from 1.2 x 10(16) to 6. 3 x 10(16) cm(-2). Postimplantation anneals have been carried out in a n Ar ambient at temperatures T-a of 400 and 450 degrees C for 10 h at both atmospheric pressure and hydrostatic pressures of 0.1, 10, 12, an d 15 kbar. It has been found that the intensity of the ultraviolet (si milar to 360 nm), blue (similar to 460 nm), and red (similar to 600 nm ) PL emission bands increases with raising hydrostatic pressure whereb y the PL peaks retain their wavelength positions. The results obtained have been interpreted in terms of enhanced, pressure-mediated formati on of =Si-Si= centers and small Si clusters within metastable regions of the ion-implanted SiO2. (C) 1998 American Institute of Physics. [S0 003-6951(98)01636-2].