Photoluminescence from Gd-implanted AlN and GaN Epilayers

Abstract

ABSTRACTGaN and AlN thin films were implanted with gadolinium (Gd)atoms and characterized using deep ultra-violet (UV) photoluminescence(PL). The Gd-implanted samples were annealed at temperatures up to 1178K in a flowing N2 gas to facilitate recovery of implantation-related damage. Using the output at 195 nm from a quadrupled Ti:sapphire laser, narrow PL emission was observed at 318 nm from the Gd- implanted AlN thin films. This emission is characteristic of the lowest energy 4f transition of the trivalent Gd ion. A boarder emission band, also centered at 318 nm, was observed under excitation at 266 nm. No PL emission was observed from the Gd-implanted GaN thin films at either the bandedge or due to a 4f transition. The dependence of the UV emission on AlN sample temperature was systematically studied. The peak PL emission intensity decreased by less that a factor of 3 over the temperature range of 10 K to 300 K. Decay transients of the UV emission were measured indicating that the lifetime of this emission is very fast.