Radiation in Semiconductors

MUTHURAJA.S

Radiation in Semiconductors-Stokes shift.

Stokes shift is the difference (in wavelength or frequency units) between positions of the band maxima of the absorption and emission spectra of the same electronic transition. When a system (be it a molecule or atom) absorbs a photon, it gains energy and enters an excited state. One way for the system to relax is to emit a photon, thus losing its energy (another method would be the loss of heat energy). When the emitted photon has less energy than the absorbed photon, this energy difference is the Stokes shift or Frank-Condon shift. If the emitted photon has more energy, the energy difference is called an anti-Stokes shift.

Near Band Gap Radiative Transitions

Exciton Recombination
The electrons and holes produced by the absorption of a photon of near-bandgap energy can pair to form an exciton. Recombination of the electron-hole pair results in a narrow and sharp peak in the emission spectra.

Near Band Gap Radiative Transitions

Near Band Gap Radiative Transitions

Exciton Recombination
The probability of exciton recombination is very low in indirect bandgap materials.

Deep Level Transitions

Deep levels in forbidden energy gap acts as a carrier recombination or trapping centers Adversely affects the device performance Defect in the Lattice give rise to Deep levels in semiconductors Vacancies Interstitial impurities Substitutional impurities Impurity vacancy complexes

Deep Level Transitions

Excess energy of carriers recombining at these levels is carried away by single or multiple phonons. Radiative efficiency is degraded due to this transitions, and so called Killer Centers Some deep levels due to impurities and defects are radiative in nature

Eg :Cu (0.18 & 0.41) eV , Mn (0.10 )eV in GaAs

Auger Recombination
Important in heavily doped semiconductors. Auger effect is a three carrier, nonradiative recombination process in which the excess energy released by the recombination of an electron hole pair is transferred by coulombic collisions as kinetic energy of a third free carrier, which is raised in energy deep into the respective band. Auger recombination is probably the most effective bulk recombination at increased electron and hole concentrations. More dominant in narrow band gap semiconductors and play an important role in limiting the performance of junction Lasers.

Auger Recombination
The inverse process to impact ionization is Auger recombination. In this case, an electron and a hole recombine, and the liberated energy is transferred to another electron or hole. Figure shows both these processes schematically, assuming a highly simplified band structure. The effect of a slightly more realistic band structure including heavy and light holes would be to increase the number of possible Auger processes by allowing the second hole to be either light or heavy, and by allowing hole transitions in the same band or between different valence bands.
(1)Two possible Auger recombination processes:( a) an electron with momentum k1 recombines with a hole kh and another electron at k2 receives the liberated energy and is promoted to k3 (b) a similar process involving two holes and a single electron at the Outset

Auger Recombination
The total energy and momentum conservation laws restrict the combinations of possible initial and final states.

Auger Recombination

Auger Electron : The electronic transition produced holes and energy may be released in the form of light, i.e Photonic energy The energy is released in the form of an emitted photon, the energy can also be transferred to another electron, which is ejected from the atom. This second ejected electron is called an Auger electron Upon ejection the kinetic energy of the Auger electron corresponds to the difference between the energy of the initial electronic transition and the ionization energy for the electron shell from which the Auger electron was ejected.

Auger Recombination

Auger Recombination