The carbon vacancy (VC) is perhaps the most prominent point defect in silicon carbide (SiC) and it is an efficient charge carrier lifetime killer in high-purity epitaxial layers of 4H-SiC. The VC concentration needs to be controlled and minimized for optimum materials and device performance, and an approach based on post-growth thermal processing under C-rich ambient conditions is presented. It utilizes thermodynamic equilibration and after heat treatment at 1500 °C for 1 h, the VC concentration is shown to be reduced by a factor ~25 relative to that in as-grown state-of-the-art epi-layers. Concurrently, a considerable enhancement of the carrier lifetime occurs throughout the whole of >40 µm thick epi-layers.

In this study we have grown thick 4H-SiC epitaxial layers with different n-type doping levels in the range 1E15 cm-3 to mid 1E18 cm-3, in order to investigate the influence on carrier lifetime. The epilayers were grown with identical growth conditions except the doping level on comparable substrates, in order to minimize the influence of other parameters than the n-type doping level. We have found a drastic decrease in carrier lifetime with increasing n-type doping level. Epilayers were further characterized with low temperature photoluminescence and deep level transient spectroscopy.

With the aim of determining the concentration quenching mechanism of Eu2+ doped Ca2BO3Cl, a series of phosphors with a varied Eu2+ concentration (Ca2-xBO3Cl:xEu(2+)) was synthesized by the solid state reaction method. The phase structure was determined by X-ray diffraction. Photoluminescence (PL) measurements showed broad excitation and emission signatures of the allowed f-d transition of Eu2+ ions. The PL emission intensity was found to be increased by increasing the concentration of Eu2+ ions up to x=0.03 and then decreased as a result of the concentration quenching effect. The lifetime of the emission from the Eu2+ ions was measured and the decrease in the lifetime with increasing Eu2+ concentration confirmed that non-radiative energy transfer occurred between Eu2+ ions. From the luminescence data, the value of the critical transfer distance was calculated as 1.5 nm and the corresponding concentration quenching mechanism was verified to be a dipole-dipole interaction. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Efficient energy transfer was demonstrated in the SrF2:Eu2+, Pr3+ phosphor synthesized by the co-precipitation method. Results obtained with X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray spectroscopy (XPS), photoluminescence (PL) and decay curves proposed the UV-Vis energy transfer process. The energy transfer process between the Eu2+ and Pr3+ ions in SrF2 was investigated to evaluate the potential of the Eu2+ ion as a sensitizer for the Pr3+ ion. The results proposed that Eu2+ could be a good sensitizer for absorbing the UV photons and efficiently enhancing the Pr3+ emission intensity. The energy transfer process was effective until concentration quenching for the Pr3+ ions occurred. The concentration quenching was attributed to cross-relaxation between the Pr3+ ions. (C) 2016 Author(s).

4H-SiC epilayers with very smooth surfaces were grown with high growth rates on 4° off-cut substrates using standard silane/propane chemistry. Specular surfaces with RMS values below 0.2 nm are presented for epilayers grown with growth rates up to 30 μm/h using horizontal hot-wall chemical vapor deposition, with up to 100 μm thickness. Optimization of in-situ etching conditions and C/Si ratio are presented.

Degradation-free ultrahigh-voltage (> 10 kV) PiN diodes using on-axis 4H-SiC with low forward voltage drop (V-F = 3.3 V at 100 A/cm(2)) and low differential on-resistance (R-ON = 3.4 m Omega.cm(2)) are fabricated, measured, and analyzed by device simulation. The devices show stable on-state characteristics over a broad temperature range up to 300 degrees C. They show no breakdown up to 10 kV, i.e., the highest blocking capability for 4H-SiC devices using on-axis to date. The minority carrier lifetime (tau(P)) is measured after epitaxial growth by time resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) technique at room temperature. The tau(P) is measured again after device fabrication by open circuit voltage decay (OCVD) up to 500 K.

4H-SiC epilayers were grown on 2 degrees off-cut substrates using standard silane/propane chemistry, with the aim of characterizing in-grown stacking faults. The stacking faults were analyzed with low temperature photoluminescence spectroscopy, room temperature photoluminescence mappings, room temperature cathodoluminescence and synchrotron white beam X-ray topography. At least three different types of in-grown stacking faults were observed, including double Shockley stacking faults, triple Shockley stacking faults and bar-shaped stacking faults. Those stacking faults are all previously found in 4 degrees and 8 degrees off-cut epilayers; however, the geometrical size is larger in epilayers grown on 2 degrees off-cut substrates due to lower off-cut angle. The stacking faults were formed close to the epilayer/substrate interface during the epitaxial growth. (C) 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim

SrF2:Eu,Ce3+ nanophosphors were successfully synthesized by the hydrothermal method during down-shifting investigations for solar cell applications. The phosphors were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning Auger nanoprobe, time of flight-secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. XRD showed that the crystallite size calculated with Scherrers equation was in the nanometre scale. XPS confirmed the formation of the matrix and the presence of the dopants in the SrF2 host. The PL of the nanophosphor samples were studied using different excitation sources. The phenomenon of energy transfer from Ce3+ to Eu2+ has been demonstrated.

We report on optical studies of exciton localization and recombination kinetics in two single 2.2 nm thick AlxGa1-xN/Alx+0.1Ga0.9-xN quantum well structures (x = 0.55 and 0.6) grown by plasma assisted molecular beam epitaxy on a c-sapphire substrate. Strong localization potential inherent for both the quantum well and barrier regions results in merging of the quantum well and barrier emission spectra into a single broad line centered at 285 nm (x = 0.55) and 275 nm (x = 0.6). Time-resolved photoluminescence measurements revealed surprising temperature stability of the photoluminescence decay time constant (approximate to 400 ps) relevant to the recombination of the quantum well localized excitons. This observation implies nearly constant quantum efficiency of the quantum well emission in the whole range from 4.6 to 300 K.

4H-SiC epilayers grown by standard and chlorinated chemistry were analyzed for their minority carrier lifetime and deep level recombination centers using time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) and standard deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS). Next to the well-known Z(1/2) deep level a second effective lifetime killer, RB1 (activation energy 1.05 eV, electron capture cross section 2 x 10(-16) cm(2), suggested hole capture cross section (5 +/- 2) x 10(-15) cm(2)), is detected in chloride chemistry grown epilayers. Junction-DLTS and bulk recombination simulations are used to confirm the lifetime killing properties of this level. The measured RB1 concentration appears to be a function of the iron-related Fe1 level concentration, which is unintentionally introduced via the corrosion of reactor steel parts by the chlorinated chemistry. Reactor design and the growth zone temperature profile are thought to enable the formation of RB1 in the presence of iron contamination under conditions otherwise optimal for growth of material with very low Z(1/2) concentrations. The RB1 defect is either an intrinsic defect similar to RD1/2 or EH5 or a complex involving iron. Control of these corrosion issues allows the growth of material at a high growth rate and with high minority carrier lifetime based on Z(1/2) as the only bulk recombination center.