Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Investigations Into Size And Surface Control Of Silicon Nanocrystals For Improved Optical Properties, James Donald Barnes

Dissertations and Theses

The discovery of visible photoluminescence (PL) from nanocrystalline porous silicon in 1990 led to extensive research into the mechanisms of the emergent properties, and optimization of these properties, for use in applications. The widespread use of silicon nanoparticles (Si NPs) in commercial applications is currently limited by three main factors: 1) poor radiative recombination efficiency of the interband transition, 2) instability of the interband photoluminescence, and 3) a lack of scalable methods for producing Si NPs that are both highly crystalline and size monodisperse.

To address these limitations, this dissertation correlates changes in the photoluminescence properties of hydrogen passivated silicon …