Resonant photoluminescence of Si layers grown on SiO2

The Si layers grown on SiO2 at temperatures between 430 and 550°C and annealed at high temperatures emit a photoluminescence (PL) peak in the 1.4–1.7μm range. The use of 1nm Ge coverage on SiO2, prior to the Si deposition, leads to an increase in the PL intensity. The Ge coverage also provides an increase in the average size of microcrystals in Si layers. Thick Si layers (∼5μm) exhibit resonant PL peaks in a broad spectral region from 1.2 to 1.7μm. The results show that the Si layers prepared on SiO2 under certain conditions are promising for the fabrication of light emitters on the basis of resonant cavity structures.