Optically induced dynamics of muonium centers in Si studied via their precession signatures

Fan, I.; Chow, K. H.; Hitti, B.; Scheuermann, R.; MacFarlane, W. A.; Mansour, A. I.; Schultz, B. E.; Egilmez, M.; Jung, J.; Lichti, R. L.

doi:10.1103/physrevb.77.035203

Cited by 20 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…2, and the applicability for a wide temperature range. The latter advantage is also endorsed by previous photoexcited µSR studies on Si, which found a large photoinduced relaxation in the Mu BC precession not only in the low temperature range continuously down to several Kelvins [18] but also in the high temperatures up to 550 K [19].…”

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confidence: 53%

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Photoexcited Muon Spin Spectroscopy: A New Method for Measuring Excess Carrier Lifetime in Bulk Silicon

et al. 2017

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We have measured the optically injected excess carrier lifetime in silicon using photoexcited muon spin spectroscopy. Positive muons implanted deep in a wafer can interact with the excess carriers and directly probe the bulk carrier lifetime whilst minimizing the effect from surface recombination. The method is based on the relaxation rate of muon spin asymmetry, which depends on the excess carrier concentration. The underlying microscopic mechanism has been understood by simulating the fourstate muonium model in Si under illumination. We apply the technique to different injection levels and temperatures, and demonstrate its ability for injection-and temperature-dependent lifetime spectroscopy.Excess carrier lifetime in semiconductors is an extremely sensitive probe of recombination active defect density N t [1,2]. In the case of silicon, a lifetime spectroscopy can probe N t as low as 10 10 cm −3 , corresponding to the carrier lifetime in the order of 10 ms. Therefore the lifetime measurements have been utilized to test a quality of Si wafers in various areas, and especially appreciated in photovoltaic applications where the carrier lifetime is a key parameter for the excess carriers to successfully diffuse across the p-n junction in solar cells. The microchip industries have also found its use as a cleanliness monitor in the chip manufacturing processes. It is now widely accepted that there are three main mechanisms that cause the electron-hole pair (EHP) recombination in semiconductors: 1) Shockley-Read-Hall (SRH) recombination (characterized by its lifetime τ SRH ), 2) Auger recombination (τ Auger ), and 3) radiative recombination (τ rad ) [1,2]. The bulk recombination lifetime τ bulk is then given by a relation,Among those mechanisms, the SRH recombination is a multiphonon process mediated by deep-level defect centers, and dominates τ bulk in low-level carrier injections, whilst the Auger recombination plays a key role in highlevel injections. The radiative recombination is usually negligible in bulk Si due to the indirect band structure. Although τ SRH gives a good indication of the N t level, it alone cannot determine N t explicitly -it is always necessary to assume the defect type, which is characterized by its energy level and capture cross section for electrons and holes. To measure the carrier lifetime, there are several traditional and novel methods, such as the photoconductance decay (PCD) and photoluminescence decay measurements. Induction-coupled PCD and its varieties are becoming more popular by virtue of their contactless and non-destructive measurement [1,2,6]. These techniques measure, by their nature, the effective lifetime of injected carriers, given by 1/τ ef f = 1/τ bulk + 1/τ S . The second term represents a contribution from the surface lifetime τ S which strongly depends on how the wafer surface has been conditioned. It is therefore necessary to extract τ bulk by 1) treating the surface to make τ S asymptote either 0 (e.g. sandblasting) or ∞ (e.g. passivation), or 2) measuring the same ...

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supporting

confidence: 53%

“…The µSR technique has been applied to many semiconductor systems, especially to single crystal Si [13,14]. There have been several µSR studies on illuminated Si wafers, which report a large photoinduced change in the µSR time spectrum [15,16,18,19].…”

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confidence: 99%

Photoexcited Muon Spin Spectroscopy: A New Method for Measuring Excess Carrier Lifetime in Bulk Silicon

et al. 2017

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“…Generated electrons and holes interact with Mu in a quite complex mechanism including spin exchange interaction, cyclic charge exchange reaction, and site change reaction. 13,14,16 In addition to the microscopic mechanisms, the carrier recombination lifetime and carrier transport from the illuminated surface influence the relaxation rate. Therefore, although the light-ON spectrum can be fitted well with a single exponential, the relaxation is a convolution of these factors.…”

Section: A Time Spectrummentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To demonstrate the effectiveness of the newly constructed system, we have performed a photo-µSR experiment on silicon, which is known to give a large photo-induced effect. 13,14,16 The experiment has been carried out on a 500-µm thick intrinsic silicon wafer (n-type, R ≈2400 Ω·cm) with 110 crystal axis perpendicular to the surface. One side is polished and is facing the incoming laser light, whereas the other side has an etched surface that faces the muon beam (back-pump geometry).…”

Section: Photo-µsr Experiments On Siliconmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The light effect is manifested as an additional depolarization in the µSR time spectrum, which gives information not only on the spin exchange interaction between the Mu centers and injected excess electrons, but also on the chargeand site-exchange dynamics of Mu. [13][14][15][16][17][18][19] Some of these experiments have utilized flashlamps or light bulbs as a convenient light source, 13,14,16,17 although quantifying their optical parameters is usually difficult. On the other hand, although costing more and being more complex, lasers surpass flashlamps or light bulbs in every aspect: tunable wavelength, linewidth, pulse width, beam profile and pointing, etc.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The new high field photoexcitation muon spectrometer at the ISIS pulsed neutron and muon source

Yokoyama

Lord

Murahari

et al. 2016

Review of Scientific Instruments

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A high power pulsed laser system has been installed on the high magnetic field muon spectrometer (HiFi) at the ISIS pulsed neutron and muon source, situated at the STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in the UK. The upgrade enables one to perform light-pump muon-probe experiments under a high magnetic field, which opens new applications of muon spin spectroscopy. In this report we give an overview of the principle of the HiFi Laser system, and describe the newly developed techniques and devices that enable precisely controlled photoexcitation of samples in the muon instrument. A demonstration experiment illustrates the potential of this unique combination of the photoexcited system and avoided level crossing technique.

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Defect Profiling of Oxide‐Semiconductor Interfaces Using Low‐Energy Muons

Martins

Kumar

Woerle

et al. 2023

Adv Materials Inter

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Muon spin rotation with low‐energy muons (LE‐µSR) is a powerful nuclear method where electrical and magnetic properties of surface‐near regions and thin films can be studied on a length scale of ≈200 nm. This study shows the potential of utilizing low‐energy muons for a depth‐resolved characterization of oxide‐semiconductor interfaces, i.e., for silicon (Si) and silicon carbide (4H‐SiC). The performance of semiconductor devices relies heavily on the quality of the oxide‐semiconductor interface; thus, investigation of defects present in this region is crucial to improve the technology. Silicon dioxide (SiO2) deposited by plasma‐enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) and grown by thermal oxidation of the SiO2‐semiconductor interface are compared with respect to interface and defect formation. The nanometer depth resolution of LE‐µSR allows for a clear distinction between the oxide and semiconductor layers, while also quantifying the extension of structural changes caused by the oxidation of both Si and SiC. The results demonstrate that LE‐µSR can reveal unprecedented details on the structural and electronic properties of the thermally oxidized SiO2‐semiconductor interface.

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Optically induced dynamics of muonium centers in Si studied via their precession signatures

Cited by 20 publications

References 42 publications

Photoexcited Muon Spin Spectroscopy: A New Method for Measuring Excess Carrier Lifetime in Bulk Silicon

Photoexcited Muon Spin Spectroscopy: A New Method for Measuring Excess Carrier Lifetime in Bulk Silicon

The new high field photoexcitation muon spectrometer at the ISIS pulsed neutron and muon source

Defect Profiling of Oxide‐Semiconductor Interfaces Using Low‐Energy Muons

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