Direct-Gap Photoluminescence from a Si-Ge Multilayer Super Unit Cell Grown on Si0.4Ge0.6

Abstract

Both Si and Ge possess indirect band gaps, which makes them very inefficient light emitters. One way to overcome this limitation is through bandgap engineering. M. d'Avezac et al. predicted in 2012 that a strained SiGe2Si2Ge2SiGen super unit cell on Si0.4Ge0.6 would have a direct and dipole-allowed gap of 0.863 eV, which is suited for optical fiber applications. Here we report on the epitaxial growth of such a structure and its optical properties, for which purpose two similar samples were prepared by molecular beam epitaxy and solid phase epitaxy. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra were obtained at low temperatures (6–25 K) with excitation at wavelengths of 405 and 458 nm, which emphasize the light emission from the sample superstructure. A strong low-energy PL quadruplet is seen, with peaks near 727, 758, 792 and 822 meV at 6 K, together with a much weaker peak at 871 meV. The ratio of intensities of the strong and weak peaks is the same in both samples. The weak peak at 871 meV is assigned to the dipole-allowed direct-gap transition associated with the super unit cell. The four strong peaks are attributed to dislocation related emission lines of the thick relaxed Si0.4Ge0.6 transition layer.