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Optical emission from impurities within an epitaxial-silicon optical waveguide
Optics Letters
|September 11, 2009
Summary
Beryllium pairs in silicon can bind excitons, emitting light at 1.15 micrometers. This study demonstrates optical confinement of this emission using silicon waveguides with implanted beryllium impurities.
Area of Science:
- Solid-state physics
- Materials science
- Optoelectronics
Background:
- Beryllium (Be) impurities form isoelectronic complexes in crystalline silicon.
- These Be-Si complexes can bind excitons, leading to characteristic light emission.
- Bound exciton emission in silicon is a key phenomenon for optoelectronic applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the optical confinement of bound-exciton emission from Be impurities in silicon.
- To demonstrate the feasibility of using silicon optical waveguides for this purpose.
Main Methods:
- Ion implantation of beryllium into epitaxial silicon.
- Fabrication of silicon optical waveguides.
- Optical characterization of bound-exciton emission at low temperatures.
Main Results:
- Observation of narrow-line emission near 1.15 micrometers attributed to bound excitons associated with Be pairs.
- Demonstration of optical confinement of this emission within the silicon waveguide structure.
Conclusions:
- Beryllium-impurity-bound excitons in silicon can be optically confined.
- Silicon optical waveguides offer a platform for controlling and utilizing this emission for photonic devices.
