Equilibrium and non-equilibrium point defects in SiGeSn alloys
Abstract
Extending the capability of existing group IV materials systems, while maintaining the compatibility with existing highly optimized large-scale processing methods and systems, is one of the grand challenges in semiconductor materials science and technology. The development of next generation devices that integrate photonic and electronic functionality requires fundamental understanding of the key characteristics of the novel materials. The recently developed ternary SiyGe1-x-ySnx alloys are at present being investigated for integrated Si photonics, solar cell materials, telecommunication applications, IR photodetectors and even source/drain materials for Ge nMOS devices. These alloys have great potential in offering opportunities for defect and strain engineering thanks to the decoupling of the band structure and lattice constants. However, detailed investigations of point defect identities, their formation mechanisms and distributions as well as their opto-electronic characteristics faces outstanding challenges as the majority of experimental characterization techniques have been developed for the visible-to-UV range due to the interest in Si and III-V (and III-N) semiconductor technologies. When the semiconductor bandgap is reduced to the IR range, most of the techniques fail to deliver reasonable (or any) data. As a consequence, in spite of the strong interest in the SiyGe1-x-ySnx alloys, only a handful of reports have emerged on the most fundamental semiconductor functionality features, that is the point defects they contain.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Apr 20, 2023
- Source ID
- FA86552217037
Entities
People
- Filip Tuomisto
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- United States Air Force
- University of Helsinki