Influence of the amorphous/crystalline silicon heterostructure properties on planar conductance measurements

We report a quasi-analytical calculation describing the heterojunction between hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) and crystalline silicon (c-Si) at equilibrium. It has been developed and used to determine the carrier sheet density in the strongly inverted layer at the a-Si:H/ c-Si interface. The model assumes an exponential band tail for the defect distribution in a-Si:H. The effects of the different parameters involved in the calculation are investigated in detail, such as the Fermi level position in a-Si:H, the density of states and the band offsets. The calculation was used to interpret temperature dependent planar conductance measurements carried out on (n) a-Si:H/ (p) c-Si and (p) a-Si:H/(n) c-Si structures, which allowed us to confirm a previous evaluation of the conduction band offset, ∆EC=0.18±0.05eV, and to evaluate the valence band offset: ∆EV=0.36±0.05eV at the a-Si:H/ c-Si heterojunction. The results are placed in the frame of recent publications. ► We calculate the band-bending in the crystalline part of a silicon heterojunction. ► The dependence of the bend-bending on structure parameters is studied. ► The band-bending is mainly influenced by the band offsets and density of states. ► We measured planar conductance on amorphous/crystalline silicon heterojunctions. ► We deduce the conduction and valence band offsets: 0.18eV and 0.35eV respectively.