Enhancement in light emission and electrical efficiencies of a silicon nanocrystal light-emitting diode by indium tin oxide nanowires

Abstract

We report an enhancement in light emission and electrical efficiencies of a Si nanocrystal (NC) light-emitting diode (LED) by employing indium tin oxide (ITO) nanowires (NWs). The formed ITO NWs (diameter < 50 nm) are compactly knitted and have a tendency to grow perpendicularly above the surface. The electrical characteristics of Si NC LED were significantly improved, which was attributed to an enhancement in the current spreading property due to densely interconnecting ITO NWs. In addition, light output power and wall-plug efficiency from the Si NC LED were enhanced by 45% and 38%, respectively. This was originated from an enhancement in the escape probability of the photons generated in the Si NCs due to multiple scatterings at the surface of ITO NWs acting as a light waveguide. We show here that the use of the ITO NWs can be very useful for realizing a highly efficient Si NC LED.