The role of N-Si-O bonding configurations in tunable photoluminescence of oxygenated amorphous silicon nitride films

Last year, we have reported that the internal quantum efficiency of photoluminescence (PL) from amorphous silicon oxynitride (a-SiNxOy) films has been achieved as high as 60%. The present work intensively investigated the mechanisms for tunable PL in the 2.05–2.95 eV range from our a-SiNx:O films, by using a combination of optical characterizations, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements. The results of XPS, EPR, and photoluminescence excited measurements indicated that the incorporation of oxygen atoms into silicon nitride (a-SiNx) networks not only reduced the band tail structure disorder (Urbach tail width EU) but also created N-Si-O (Nx) defect states in the band gap. We have discovered the distinctive PL characteristics from a-SiNx:O films with various NH3/SiH4 ratios. The PL peak energy (EPL) is independent of the excitation energy (Eexc) and the PL intensity (IPL) is regardless of the optical band gap (Eopt) but is proportional to the Nx defects concentration, both of which are completely different from the PL characteristics by band tail states recombination mechanism, in which the EPL is proportional to Eexc (when Eexc ≤ Eopt) and the IPL is dependent on the relative position of Eexc and Eopt. Based on the N-Si-O bonding configurations and the distinctive PL characteristics, the radiative recombination mechanism through the N-Si-O defect states has been proposed, by which the performance of stimulated emission may be realized in this kind of a-SiNx:O films.