Experimental Study of the Influence of CH4 and H2 on the Conformation, Chemical Composition, and Luminescence of Silicon Quantum Dots Inlaid in Silicon Carbide Thin Films Grown by Remote Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition

Silicon carbide (SiC) has become an extraordinary photonic material. Achieving reproducible self-formation of silicon quantum dots (SiQDs) within SiC matrices could be beneficial for producing electroluminescent devices operating at high power, high temperatures, or high voltages. In this work, we use a remote plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition system to grow SiC thin films. We identified that a particular combination of 20 sccm of CH4 and a range of 58-100 sccm of H-2 mass flow with 600 degrees C annealing allows the abundant and reproducible self-formation of SiQDs within the SiC films. These SiQDs dramatically increase the photoluminescence-integrated intensity of our SiC films. The photoluminescence of our SiQDs shows a normal distribution with positive skewness and well-defined intensity maxima in blue regions of the electromagnetic spectrum (439-465 nm) and is clearly perceptible to the naked eye.

Automated summary

Silicon carbide (SiC) is a remarkable photonic material. The reproducible self-formation of silicon quantum dots (SiQDs) within SiC matrices has been achieved, which is beneficial for producing electroluminescent devices operating at high power, high temperatures, or high voltages. The introduction of SiQDs dramatically increases the photoluminescence-integrated intensity of SiC films, showing a normal distribution with positive skewness and well-defined intensity maxima in the blue region of the electromagnetic spectrum (439-465 nm), which is visible to the naked eye.