Size and dopant-concentration dependence of photoluminescence properties of ion-implanted phosphorus- and boron-codoped Si nanocrystals

We investigate the nanocrystallite-size and dopant-concentration dependence of the photoluminescence (PL) properties of heavily phosphorus- (P) and boron- (B) codoped Si nanocrystals (Si NCs), prepared using a combination of sputtering and ion implantation techniques. We find that the heavily doped Si NC exhibits three exotic luminescence bands, A, B, and C. The peak energy of band A redshifts with increasing dopant concentration. This band is due to the band-to-band transition at the reduced Si-NC band gap caused by the formation of impurity bands together with band-tailing effects. The PL redshift becomes large when the nanocrystallite size decreases, suggesting the occurrence of the quantum-confinement-induced carrier doping effect. The peak energies of bands B and C are independent of both the concentration and size, indicating that these bands are due to transitions between defect- and/or impurity-related localized states. Band A shows stronger thermal quenching than the PL band in pure (undoped) Si NCs, the magnitude of which depends on the dopant concentration. The stronger thermal quenching in band A is probably due to the thermally induced migration of electrons in the impurity band.