Enhancement of Performance of Si Nanocrystal Light-Emitting Diodes by Using Ag Nanodots

Effects of Ag nanodots on silicon nanocrystal (nc-Si) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are investigated. The electrical property of the nc-Si LED with Ag nanodots was enhanced compared to that of the nc-Si LED without ones. This was attributed to the increase in the electric field due to the formation of Ag nanodots at the contact interface, indicating that the current could flow more efficiently from the indium tin oxide layer to n-SiC film. The formation of Ag nanodots with a size of
$3 sim 6$
nm was confirmed by using a high-resolution transmission electron microscope analysis. Moreover, light output power of the nc-Si LED with Ag nanodots was enhanced.