Silicon Nanocrystals

This unique collection of knowledge represents a comprehensive treatment of the fundamental and practical consequences of size reduction in silicon crystals. This clearly structured reference introduces readers to the optical, electrical and thermal properties of silicon nanocrystals that arise from their greatly reduced dimensions. It covers their synthesis and characterization from both chemical and physical viewpoints, including ion implantation, colloidal synthesis and vapor deposition methods. A major part of the text is devoted to applications in microelectronics as well as photonics and nanobiotechnology, making this of great interest to the high-tech industry.

Recent developments in the technology of silicon nanocrystals and silicon nanostructures, where quantum-size effects are important, are systematically described including examples of device applications. Due to the strong quantum confinement effect, the material properties are freed from the usual indirect- or direct-bandgap regime, and the optical, electrical, thermal, and chemical properties of these nanocrystalline and nanostructured semiconductors are drastically changed from those of bulk silicon. In addition to efficient visible luminescence, various other useful material functions are induced in nanocrystalline silicon and periodic silicon nanostructures. Some novel devices and applications, in fields such as photonics (electroluminescence diode, microcavity, and waveguide), electronics (single-electron device, spin transistor, nonvolatile memory, and ballistic electron emitter), acoustics, and biology, have been developed by the use of these quantum-induced functions in ways different from the conventional scaling principle for ULSI.

Semiconductor nanocrystals and metal nanoparticles are the building blocks of the next generation of electronic, optoelectronic, and photonic devices. Covering this rapidly developing and interdisciplinary field, the book examines in detail the physical properties and device applications of semiconductor nanocrystals and metal nanoparticles. It begins with a review of the synthesis and characterization of various semiconductor nanocrystals and metal nanoparticles and goes on to discuss in detail their optical, light emission, and electrical properties. It then illustrates some exciting applications of nanoelectronic devices (memristors and single-electron devices) and optoelectronic devices (UV detectors, quantum dot lasers, and solar cells), as well as other applications (gas sensors and metallic nanopastes for power electronics packaging). Focuses on a new class of materials that exhibit fascinating physical properties and have many exciting device applications. Presents an overview of synthesis strategies and characterization techniques for various semiconductor nanocrystal and metal nanoparticles. Examines in detail the optical/optoelectronic properties, light emission properties, and electrical properties of semiconductor nanocrystals and metal nanoparticles. Reviews applications in nanoelectronic devices, optoelectronic devices, and photonic devices.

Silicon, the leading material in microelectronics during the last four decades, also promises to be the key material in the future. Despite many claims that silicon technology has reached fundamental limits, the performance of silicon microelectronics continues to improve steadily. The same holds for almost all the applications for which Si was considered to be unsuitable. The main exception to this positive trend is the silicon laser, which has not been demonstrated to date. The main reason for this comes from a fundamental limitation related to the indirect nature of the Si band-gap. In the recent past, many different approaches have been taken to achieve this goal: dislocated silicon, extremely pure silicon, silicon nanocrystals, porous silicon, Er doped Si-Ge, SiGe alloys and multiquantum wells, SiGe quantum dots, SiGe quantum cascade structures, shallow impurity centers in silicon and Er doped silicon. All of these are abundantly illustrated in the present book.

This fourth book in the series Silicon Photonics gathers together reviews of recent advances in the field of silicon photonics that go beyond already established and applied concepts in this technology. The field of research and development in silicon photonics has moved beyond improvements of integrated circuits fabricated with complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) technology to applications in engineering, physics, chemistry, materials science, biology, and medicine. The chapters provided in this book by experts in their fields thus cover not only new research into the highly desired goal of light production in Group IV materials, but also new measurement regimes and novel technologies, particularly in information processing and telecommunication. The book is suited for graduate students, established scientists, and research engineers who want to update their knowledge in these new topics.

This comprehensive tutorial guide to silicon nanomaterials spans from fundamental properties, growth mechanisms, and processing of nanosilicon to electronic device, energy conversion and storage, biomedical, and environmental applications. It also presents core knowledge with basic mathematical equations, tables, and graphs in order to provide the reader with the tools necessary to understand the latest technology developments. From low-dimensional structures, quantum dots, and nanowires to hybrid materials, arrays, networks, and biomedical applications, this Sourcebook is a complete resource for anyone working with this materials: Covers fundamental concepts, properties, methods, and practical applications. Focuses on one important type of silicon nanomaterial in every chapter. Discusses formation, properties, and applications for each material. Written in a tutorial style with basic equations and fundamentals included in an extended introduction. Highlights materials that show exceptional properties as well as strong prospects for future applications. Klaus D. Sattler is professor physics at the University of Hawaii, Honolulu, having earned his PhD at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. He was honored with the Walter Schottky Prize from the German Physical Society, and is the editor of the sister work also published by Taylor & Francis, Carbon Nanomaterials Sourcebook, as well as the acclaimed multi-volume Handbook of Nanophysics.

Defects in Nanocrystals: Structural and Physico-Chemical Aspects discusses the nature of semiconductor systems and the effect of the size and shape on their thermodynamic and optoelectronic properties at the mesoscopic and nanoscopic levels. The nanostructures considered in this book are individual nanometric crystallites, nanocrystalline films, and nanowires of which the thermodynamic, structural, and optical properties are discussed in detail. The work: Outlines the influence of growth processes on their morphology and structure Describes the benefits of optical spectroscopies in the understanding of the role and nature of defects in nanostructured semiconductors Considers the limits of nanothermodynamics Details the critical role of interfaces in nanostructural behavior Covers the importance of embedding media in the physico-chemical properties of nanostructured semiconductors Explains the negligible role of core point defects vs. surface and interface defects Written for researchers, engineers, and those working in the physical and physicochemical sciences, this work comprehensively details the chemical, structural, and optical properties of semiconductor nanostructures for the development of more powerful and efficient devices.

Photonics is a key technology of this century. The combination of photonics and silicon technology is of great importance because of the potentiality of coupling electronics and optical functions on a single chip. Many experimental and theoretical studies have been performed to understand and design the photonic properties of silicon nanocrystals. Generation of light in silicon is a challenging perspective in the field; however, the issue of light-emitting devices does not limit the activity in the field. Research is also focused on light modulators, optical waveguides and interconnectors, optical amplifiers, detectors, memory elements, photonic crystals, etc. A particularly important task of silicon nanostructures is to generate electrical energy from solar light. Understanding the optical properties of silicon-based materials is central in designing photonic components. It is not possible to control the optical properties of nanoparticles without fundamental information on their microscopic structure, which explains a large number of theoretical works on this subject. Many fundamental and practical problems should be solved in order to develop this technology. In addition to open fundamental questions, it is even more difficult to develop the known experimental results towards practical realization. However, the world market for silicon photonics is expected to be huge; thus, more research activity in the field of silicon nanophotonics is expected in the future. This book describes different aspects of silicon nanophotonics, from fundamental issues to practical devices. The second edition is essentially different from the book published in 2008. Eight chapters of the first edition are not included in the new book, because the recent progress on those topics has not been large enough. Instead, seven new chapters appear. The other eight chapters are essentially modified to describe recent achievements in the field.