Black luminescent silicon

Black silicon is a fascinating multipurpose modification of bulk silicon which can be fabricated in a selforganized structure formation process during dry etching of bare silicon wafer leading to the formation of a high density of silicon needles. The smallest dimension of the tips approaches values between 1 and 2 nm. The silicon nanostructure exhibits an extremely low diffuse reflectivity. The nanosized tips and their coating with fluorine doped nonstoichiometric silicon dioxide are responsible for cathodoluminescence in the blue‐green and red regions of the visible spectra (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)