No abstract

The interaction of light with noble metal nanoparticles deposited onto the top surface of a semiconductor has been investigated using the finite-difference time-domain method. The scattering is calculated for spherical and hemispherical silver nanoparticles placed in a periodic two-dimensional array on the upper surface of a semi-infinite silicon substrate. The results show that the contact area between hemispherical particles and the silicon significantly reduces the forward scattering. The use of an oxide buffer layer to separate the particle from the semiconductor is investigated and is seen to be important if the forward scattering of light is to be enhanced.

There has been much recent interest in the application of plasmonics to improve the efficiency of silicon solar cells. In this paper we use finite difference time domain calculations to investigate the placement of hemispherical gold nanoparticles on the rear surface of a silicon solar cell. The results indicate that nanoparticles protruding into the silicon, rather than into air, have a larger scattering efficiency and diffuse scattering into the semiconductor. This finding could lead to improved light trapping within a thin silicon solar cell device.

We present a data transfer system for the grid environment built on top of the open source FDT tool (Fast Data Transfer) developed by Caltech in collaboration with the

Electron beams can transfer energy very efficiently to semiconductors. Systems have been developed for rapid heating to temperature around 1000°C under a variety of conditions from adiabatic to isothermal. Pulsed, focused, line and synthesized shaped beams are used to obtain a wide range of thermal cycles. The following applications are described: the annealing of ion-implanted Si, particularly the activation of As implants and shallow implants (Rp<150Å), the annealing of Si and Se in GaAs, the e-beam processing of implanted silicon devices and the improvement of SOS substrate quality. Localized annealing by a computer controlled e-beam and the recrystallization of deposited films on insulators are also considered.