Effects of Curing Temperature on the Optical and Charge Trap Properties of InP Quantum Dot Thin Films

Abstract

Highly luminescent and monodisperse InP quantum dots (QDs) were prepared by a non-organometallic approach in a non-coordinating solvent. Fatty acids with well-defined chain lengths as the ligand, a non coordinating solvent, and a thorough degassing process are all important factors for the formation of high quality InP QDs. By varying the molar concentration of indium to ligand, QDs of different size were prepared and their absorption and emission behaviors studied. By spin-coating a colloidal solution of InP QD onto a silicon wafer, InP QD thin films were obtained. The thickness of the thin films cured at 60 and were nearly identical (approximately 860 nm), whereas at , the thickness of the thin film was found to be 760 nm. Different contrast regions (A, B, C) were observed in the TEM images, which were found to be unreacted precursors, InP QDs, and indium-rich phases, respectively, through EDX analysis. The optical properties of the thin films were measured at three different curing temperatures (60, 200, ), which showed a blue shift with an increase in temperature. It was proposed that this blue shift may be due to a decrease in the core diameter of the InP QD by oxidation, as confirmed by the XPS studies. Oxidation also passivates the QD surface by reducing the amount of P dangling bonds, thereby increasing luminescence intensity. The dielectric properties of the thin films were also investigated by capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements in a metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) device. At 60 and , negative flat band shifts () were observed, which were explained by the presence of P dangling bonds on the InP QD surface. At , clockwise hysteresis was observed due to trapping and detrapping of positive charges on the thin film, which was explained by proposing the existence of deep energy levels due to the indium-rich phases.