The Preparation of Nanocrystalline Silicon by Plasma-Enhanced Hydrogenation for the Fabrication of Light-Emitting Diodes

The fabrication of nanocrystalline silicon light-emitting diodes is reported using a novel plasma-enhanced hydrogenation method. The fabrication process consisted of the deposition of amorphous silicon on a silicon substrate, a hydrogen plasma treatment, and subsequent annealing, and the deposition of TiO
₂
, indium-tin oxide, and metal contact layers. The entire process was performed at temperatures below 400 degC and is compatible with standard silicon fabrication technologies. The current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of the device showed a rectifying diode behavior where electrons tunneled through the thin TiO
₂
layer and recombined with the holes injected from the P-type silicon substrate leading to photon generation. The structure of the nanocrystalline silicon films was investigated by scanning electron and transmission electron microscopies, and the spectral distribution of the emitted light was measured by a cathodoluminescence