Semiconductor Lifetime Research Articles

Electronic properties of Fe impurities in SnS van der Waals crystals – Revealing high-mobility holes

Defect control is critical to achieve long carrier lifetimes in semiconductors. SnS is a promising thermoelectric and photovoltaic material, in which native defects play a detrimental role, particularly in photovoltaics. In this study, we investigated the Fe-doping of SnS and the interaction of Fe impurities with native defects in a series of single crystals of Sn1-xFexS up to concentrations of x = 0.05. Although the doped single crystals appear rather disordered, the hole mobility is very high (∼8500 cm2V-1s−1 at 30 K for Sn0.99Fe0.01S), suggesting that hole-mediated charge transport in this material is largely insensitive to extrinsic impurities. Charge transport analysis suggests that the incorporation of Fe atoms leads to the healing of the intrinsic defect structure and the exclusion of minority electrons from charge transport, allowing the observation of high hole mobility.

Validation of minority carrier recombination lifetimes in low-dimensional semiconductors found by analytical photoresponses

It is a formidable challenge to find the minority carrier recombination lifetime in low-dimensional devices as low-dimensionality increases the surface recombination rate and often reduces the recombination lifetime to a scale of picoseconds. In this work, we demonstrated a simple but powerful method to quantitatively probe the minority carrier recombination lifetime in silicon nanowires or microwires by fitting the experimental photoresponses with our recently established analytical photoresponse principle of photoconductors. The nanowires were passivated with small molecules and Al2O3 to suppress surface recombination, which will increase the minority recombination lifetimes. As expected, the minority carrier recombination lifetime found by this approach increases by orders of magnitude. These wires were also made into PIN diodes, the leakage of which was reduced at least 1 order of magnitude after surface passivation by Al2O3. The minority recombination lifetime found from the leakage current of these devices is largely consistent with what we found from our analytical photoresponse principle. As a further step, we performed scanning photocurrent microscopy to find the minority diffusion length from which we found that the minority recombination lifetime is close to what we found from the analytical photoresponses. In short, this work validated that our analytical response principle is a reliable method to find the minority recombination lifetime in low-dimensional semiconductors.

On the unique temperature-dependent interplay of a B-exciton and its trion in monolayer MoSe2.

Plasmonics in metal nanoparticles can enhance their near field optical interaction with matter, promoting emission into selected optical modes. Here, using Ga nanoparticles with carefully tuned plasmonic resonance in proximity to MoSe2 monolayers, we show selective photoluminescence enhancement from the B-exciton and its trion with no observable A-exciton emission. The nanoengineered substrate allows for the first direct experimental observation of the B-trion binding energy in semiconducting monolayers. Using temperature-dependent photoluminescence measurements, we show the following features of the MoSe2 B-exciton family: (i) the trion binding energy has an observable temperature dependence with a decreasing trend towards low temperatures and (ii) the exciton-trion emission ratio varies non-monotonically with temperature with a steep increase in the trion emission at lower temperatures. Using detailed models, we identify the particle size required for selective excitation and describe the underlying physical processes. This opens newer avenues for selectively promoting excitonic species and tuning the effective particle lifetimes in monolayer semiconductors. These results demonstrate the excellent plasmonic properties of Ga nanoparticles, which along with facile processing techniques makes it an attractive alternative to the prevalent noble metal plasmonics having applications in flexible/stretchable materials and textiles.

Lifetime of Power Semiconductors in Electric Mobility

Lifetime of Power Semiconductors in Electric Mobility

Development of time-resolved photoluminescence microscopy of semiconductor materials and devices using a compressed sensing approach

Charge carrier lifetime is a key property of semiconductor materials for photonic applications. One of the most established methods for measuring lifetimes is time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL), which is typically performed as a single-point measurement. In this paper, we demonstrate a new time-correlated single photon counting method (TCSPC) for TRPL microscopy, for which spatial information can be achieved without requiring point-by-point scanning through the use of a compressed sensing (CS) approach. This enables image acquisition with a single pixel detector for mapping the lifetime of semiconductors with high repeatability. The methodology for signal acquisition and image reconstruction was developed and tested through simulations. Effects of noise levels on the reliability and quality of image reconstruction were investigated. Finally, the method was implemented experimentally to demonstrate a proof-of-concept CS TCSPC imaging system for acquiring TRPL maps of semiconductor materials and devices. TRPL imaging results of a semiconductor device acquired using a CS approach are presented and compared with results of TRPL mapping of the same excitation area measured through a point-by-point method. The feasibility of the methodology is demonstrated, the benefits and challenges of the experimental prototype system are presented and discussed.

Observation of ~100% valley-coherent excitons in monolayer MoS2 through giant enhancement of valley coherence time

In monolayer transition metal dichalcogenide semiconductors, valley coherence degrades rapidly due to a combination of fast scattering and inter-valley exchange interaction. This leads to a sub-picosecond valley coherence time, making coherent manipulation of exciton a highly challenging task. Using monolayer MoS2 sandwiched between top and bottom graphene, here we demonstrate fully valley-coherent excitons by observing ~100% degree of linear polarization in steady state photoluminescence. This is achieved in this unique design through a combined effect of (a) suppression in exchange interaction due to enhanced dielectric screening, (b) reduction in exciton lifetime due to a fast inter-layer transfer to graphene, and (c) operating in the motional narrowing regime. We disentangle the role of the key parameters affecting valley coherence by using a combination of calculation (solutions of Bethe-Salpeter and Maialle-Silva-Sham equations) and a careful choice of design of experiments using four different stacks with systematic variation of screening and exciton lifetime. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report in which the excitons are found to be valley coherent in the entire lifetime in monolayer semiconductors, allowing optical readout of valley coherence possible.

Component-Level Semiconductor Loss Balancing for IGBT Based High Power MMC Through Insertion Index Modification

Modular multilevel converter (MMC) is the state-of-the-art converter topology in HVdc transmission applications. The reliability and lifetime of MMCs are strongly dependent on the health of the internal power semiconductors. The operating loss of power semiconductors, which is one of the dominant factors affecting component aging, is not uniformly distributed between the top and bottom switches in the same submodule (SM) due to the dc bias in the arm current. Such loss imbalance leads to differences in lifetime of semiconductors and reduces the reliability of SM. Especially under inverter conditions, the bottom insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) in SM is subjected to a severe thermal stress and has a relatively high failure rate for the thermal vulnerability of IGBT. To extend the lifetime and improve the reliability, this article proposes a component-level loss balancing method. It is achieved by insertion index modification based on a feed-forward gain controller. The proposed method can improve the loss distribution among the top and bottom semiconductors without side effects on ac and dc outputs. Its effectiveness and feasibility are validated through simulation and experimental results.

Long-range transport and ultrafast interfacial charge transfer in perovskite/monolayer semiconductor heterostructure for enhanced light absorption and photocarrier lifetime.

Atomically thin two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have shown great potential for optoelectronic applications, including photodetectors, phototransistors, and spintronic devices. However, the applications of TMD-based optoelectronic devices are severely restricted by their weak light absorption and short exciton lifetime due to their atomically thin nature and strong excitonic effect. To simultaneously enhance the light absorption and photocarrier lifetime of monolayer semiconductors, here, we report 3D/2D perovskite/TMD type II heterostructures by coupling solution processed highly smooth and ligand free CsPbBr3 film with MoS2 and WS2 monolayers. By time-resolved spectroscopy, we show interfacial hole transfer from MoS2 (WS2) to the perovskite layer occurs in an ultrafast time scale (100 and 350fs) and interfacial electron transfer from ultrathin CsPbBr3 to MoS2 (WS2) in ∼3 (9) ps, forming a long-lived charge separation with a lifetime of >20ns. With increasing CsPbBr3 thickness, the electron transfer rate from CsPbBr3 to TMD is slower, but the efficiency remains to be near-unity due to coupled long-range diffusion and ultrafast interfacial electron transfer. This study indicates that coupling solution processed lead halide perovskites with strong light absorption and long carrier diffusion length to monolayer semiconductors to form a type II heterostructure is a promising strategy to simultaneously enhance the light harvesting capability and photocarrier lifetime of monolayer semiconductors.

Direct comparison of three-terminal and four-terminal Hanle effects in the persistent photoconductor Al0.3Ga0.7As:Si

The electronic rendition of the Hanle effect, which is interpreted as the ensemble dephasing of a spin accumulation in the semiconductor under a perpendicular magnetic field, has been one of the most widely utilized and effective methods of measuring spin lifetime, spin accumulation, and spin transport in semiconductors. However, the origin of the Hanle magnetoresistance in the three-terminal (3T) setup has been intensively questioned both theoretically and experimentally; this is in contrast to the nonlocal four-terminal (NL-4T) measurement, which is accepted as reflecting spin accumulation and its spatial decay in metals and semiconductors alike. Here, we present results from 3T and NL-4T Hanle measurements on the same spin injection and detection devices with an ${\mathrm{Al}}_{0.3}{\mathrm{Ga}}_{0.7}\mathrm{As}:\mathrm{Si}$ semiconducting channel. The use of ${\mathrm{Al}}_{0.3}{\mathrm{Ga}}_{0.7}\mathrm{As}:\mathrm{Si}$, a persistent photoconductor, enables examination of the evolution of both types of Hanle signals with varying carrier density in the channel on one and the same device via in situ photodoping. We observe that the 3T and NL-4T Hanle signals exhibit similar Lorentzian line shapes, and thus yield similar spin lifetimes at all carrier densities. Moreover, the amplitudes of both types of Hanle signals are found to be consistent with each other, showing a similar exponential decrease with carrier density and in agreement with the Valet-Fert theory, in contrast to devices with artificial oxide barriers. These observations provide compelling evidence that in devices in which the spin injectors and detectors are engineered to minimize the presence of localized states, the 3T Hanle measurements provide a reliable probe of the spin accumulation and its dynamics in the semiconductor channel.

Effects of oxygen vacancies on the photoexcited carrier lifetime in rutile TiO2.

The photoexcited carrier lifetime in semiconductors plays a crucial role in solar energy conversion processes. The defects or impurities in semiconductors are usually proposed to introduce electron-hole (e-h) recombination centers and consequently reduce the photoexcited carrier lifetime. In this report, we investigate the effects of oxygen vacancies (OV) on the carrier lifetime in rutile TiO2, which has important applications in photocatalysis and photovoltaics. It is found that an OV introduces two excess electrons which form two defect states in the band gap. The lower state is localized on one Ti atom and behaves as a small polaron, and the higher one is a hybrid state contributed by three Ti atoms around the OV. Both the polaron and hybrid states exhibit strong electron-phonon (e-ph) coupling and their charge distributions become more and more delocalized when the temperature increases from 100 to 700 K. Such strong e-ph coupling and charge delocalization enhance the nonadibatic coupling between the electronic states along the hole relaxation path, where the defect states behave as intermediate states, leading to a distinct acceleration of e-h recombination. Our study provides valuable insights to understand the role of defects on photoexcited carrier lifetime in semiconductors.

Electro-Thermal Control on Power Electronic Converters: A Finite Control Set Model Predictive Control Approach

<div class="section abstract"><div class="htmlview paragraph">With the increasing attention towards electric vehicles (EV), power electronics technology has become more prominent on vehicular systems. EV requires compact energy conversion and control technology to improve system efficiency and optimize the sizing of power components. Therefore, it is important to reduce thermal losses, while supplying an adequate amount of power to different EV devices. Silicon carbide (SiC)-based power semiconductors provide performance improvements such as lower power losses, higher junction temperature and higher switching frequency compared to the conventional silicon (Si)-based switching devices. High-frequency switching is preferred for power converters to minimize the necessity of passive filters; however, high-frequency switching causes additional thermal stress on semiconductor switches due to the increase in switching losses. The degradation of switching devices in power converters are primarily related to the junction temperature. One method to improve the lifetime of semiconductors is to control the module junction temperature by controlling switching losses in the switching state, while providing power quality in the required limits and maintaining voltage stability. This concept is referred to as active thermal management. This paper illustrates the Finite Control Set Model Predictive Control (FCS-MPC) approach on how electrical performance can be preserved while providing electro-thermal management for the SiC-based switching devices on three-level three-phase power converter to improve system efficiency and reliability.</div></div>

Conjugated polymers for functional applications: lifetime and performance of polymeric organic semiconductors in organic field‐effect transistors

Developments in the performance of organic field‐effect transistors have produced devices with similar, and in some cases even better, charge transport properties compared to amorphous silicon. For devices to be viable in more appliances and industry, their lifetime must be improved. However, advances in lifetime are lagging compared to other properties, such as charge carrier mobilities. The lack of a standardized methodology to evaluate the lifetime adds complications, as this property can mostly be compared qualitatively rather than quantitatively. Still, extension of lifetime has been realized through intelligent design of device architecture or alterations that benefit the stability of a device's active organic semiconducting polymer. More unique methods to improve the stability of organic field‐effect transistors, such as blending the semiconducting layer with other polymers or imposing micro‐/nanostructures in the device, have yielded positive results. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry

Strategies for Semiconductor/Electrocatalyst Coupling toward Solar-Driven Water Splitting.

Hydrogen (H2) has a significant potential to enable the global energy transition from the current fossil‐dominant system to a clean, sustainable, and low‐carbon energy system. While presently global H2 production is predominated by fossil‐fuel feedstocks, for future widespread utilization it is of paramount importance to produce H2 in a decarbonized manner. To this end, photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting has been proposed to be a highly desirable approach with minimal negative impact on the environment. Both semiconductor light‐absorbers and hydrogen/oxygen evolution reaction (HER/OER) catalysts are essential components of an efficient PEC cell. It is well documented that loading electrocatalysts on semiconductor photoelectrodes plays significant roles in accelerating the HER/OER kinetics, suppressing surface recombination, reducing overpotentials needed to accomplish HER/OER, and extending the operational lifetime of semiconductors. Herein, how electrocatalyst coupling influences the PEC performance of semiconductor photoelectrodes is outlined. The focus is then placed on the major strategies developed so far for semiconductor/electrocatalyst coupling, including a variety of dry processes and wet chemical approaches. This Review provides a comprehensive account of advanced methodologies adopted for semiconductor/electrocatalyst coupling and can serve as a guideline for the design of efficient and stable semiconductor photoelectrodes for use in water splitting.

Aging Effect Analysis of PV Inverter Semiconductors for Ancillary Services Support

PV inverters can provide reactive power while generating active power. An ongoing microgrid implementation at Duke Energy actively engages non-utility PVs to generate/absorb reactive power in support of ancillary services to increase microgrid resiliency during extreme events. PV systems are requested to provide reactive power support: 1) in response to grid voltage variation to better regulate the local voltage; or 2) in response to utility incentives, such as following Transactive Energy System (TES) incentives. However, providing ancillary services might shorten the lifetime expectation of PV inverter semiconductors. This paper summarizes the potential impacts on a PV inverter semiconductor's lifetime when providing ancillary services. The analysis presented in this research work shows that providing reactive power support will increase the mean junction temperature and the junction temperature variation of the inverter diodes. This increased junction temperature will eventually lead to shorter diode lifetime. The lifetime estimation of semiconductors is briefly reviewed. The power losses of PV inverter semiconductors are derived as a support analysis to the junction temperature calculation. In addition, the impact of the filtering inductor on the semiconductor current distribution is discussed. The theoretical analysis presented in this research work is supported by simulation results.

The chopped moving photocarrier grating technique.

The Moving photocarrier Grating Technique (MGT) allows the simultaneous determination of the photocarrier drift mobilities and the small-signal recombination lifetime of photoconductive semiconductors. The technique measures the direct current (DC) induced by a monochromatic illumination consisting of a moving interference pattern superimposed on a uniform background of much higher intensity. A drawback of the technique is the low level of the signal to be measured, which can be masked by the noise at low temperatures or low light intensities. In this work, we propose implementing an alternating current (AC) version of the MGT by chopping the weak beam in the standard configuration. We call this new technique the Chopped Moving photocarrier Grating (CMG). In CMG, the AC signal can be measured with a lock-in amplifier for electrical noise removal. In this way, the signal-to-noise ratio can be increased compared to the standard DC technique. Assuming a multiple-trapping model for charge transport, we find the theoretical expression for the current density induced by CMG at fundamental frequency. By using a numerical simulation with parameters typical for hydrogenated amorphous silicon, we verify the expected equivalence between both techniques for low enough chopping frequencies. Then, we test experimentally this equivalence for an undoped hydrogenated amorphous silicon sample. For low signal levels, we demonstrate the superior performance of CMG.

Photocarrier transport dynamics in lifetime and relaxation regimes of semiconductors containing traps

High resistivity semiconductors used in various optoelectronic devices, such as radiation detectors and photoconductive switches, usually require electrical compensation involving deep level defects, which are also closely related to the photocarrier transport dynamics. In this paper, one-dimensional spatiotemporal evolution of photocarriers is numerically investigated in semiconductors containing traps. After introducing a high concentration of traps, the dynamics can be divided into three categories: relaxation, lifetime and intermediate regimes. Photocarriers will separate in the relaxation regime and transport ambipolarly in the lifetime regime. Captured space charges enhance the internal electric field between photogenerated electrons and holes, thus reduce carriers’ transport velocities in all three regimes. Storage of photocarriers in traps also weakens the majority carrier depletion in the relaxation regime, and could pin the majority carriers to the injection spot in the lifetime regime. In the intermediate regime, both semiconductor type and relative magnitudes of the dielectric relaxation time and carrier lifetimes determine the photocarrier transport behavior. By combining the three-energy-level compensation model and the trap-mediated recombination model, the criterion for different regimes and photocarrier transport dynamics are investigated in deep donor compensated CdTe semiconductors.

Non-linear dynamics of electron-hole plasma induced by an electron beam

This work treats the degrade of semiconductor lifetime during the pumping process. The criteria of nonlinear waves propagation that responsible for delivery the energy inside the semiconductor was determined. For this purpose, the quantum fluid model including the exchange-correlation potentials, the Bohm potential, and the degenerate pressure is employed. The reductive perturbation theory is used to reduce the basic set of quantum hydrodynamic fluid equations to Korteweg–de Vries, modified Korteweg–de Vries, and Gardner equations. When the wave carrier frequency is much smaller than the frequency of hole plasma, the non-linear rogue wave can exist and it is studied through the non-linear Schrödinger equation. This study predicts the propagation of different non-linear waves like a soliton, double layer, and rogue waves depending on the plasma and electron beam parameters. Thus, a practicable physical solution is introduced to avoid the generation of such energetic non-linear waves during the pumping process.

Generation of soliton, cnoidal, and periodic waves during pumping GaAs by an electron beam

Abstract Increasing the lifetime of plasma semiconductors that exposed to an electron beam is an important challenge. The dynamical features of growing nonlinear waves, which transfer the energy through the semiconductors to produce defects, are examined. For this purpose, a quantum fluid model including degenerate pressures, exchange-correlation effects, and Bohm potentials are considered for GaAs semiconductor plasma composed of electrons, holes, and electron beam. The basic equations are reduced to Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (KP) equation. The latter is solved analytically using the Painleve analysis method, which yields three different nonlinear solutions describe cnoidal, periodic, and soliton waves. It is found that positive and negative nonlinear wave potentials can exist. The polarity of the wave depends on an electron streaming velocity and moving frame speed. Furthermore, controlling the streaming electron density, electron streaming velocity, and direction of transverse perturbation has great importance to minimize the effects of unfavorable nonlinear waves. The relevance of electron streaming velocity and transverse perturbation direction on nonlinear wave existence is highlighted.

Carrier Lifetime in Semiconductors with Band-Gap Widths Close to the Spin-Orbit Splitting Energies

Expressions for the Auger- and radiative-recombination rates are derived in terms of Kane’s model for materials with a band-gap width close to the spin-orbit splitting energy, which is the case for InAs, InAsSb solid solutions, etc. Our results are compared with simplified expressions for recombination rates, frequently used in publications. It is shown that the nonparabolicity of the electronic structure should be taken into account in calculations of the recombination rates. As an example, the temperature dependences of the charge-carrier lifetimes governed by radiative and non-radiative processes are calculated for InAsSb solid solutions.

Photocarrier transport dynamics in lifetime and relaxation regimes of semiconductors

Understanding photogenerated carrier transport dynamics is important for optimizing the performance of various semiconductor optoelectronic devices, such as photocatalysts, solar cells, and radiation detectors. In this paper, the spatiotemporal evolution of photogenerated carriers after excitation is investigated both analytically and numerically, in order to reveal the origin of two contradictory photocarrier motion directions, i.e., separation and ambipolar transport in the semiconductors. An analytical solution of the separation distance between mean positions of photogenerated electrons and holes is derived, which shows that photocarriers will transport ambipolarly in the lifetime regime, where the carrier lifetime τ0 is larger than the dielectric relaxation time τd, and separate spontaneously in the relaxation regime, where τ0<τd. Numerical simulation verifies the analytical results and reveals rich dynamics of carrier transport near the boundary of two regimes. In the lifetime regime, the separation distance rises asymptotically to a polarization distance, while there is a transitional sub-region near the regime boundary where majority carriers go through a separating-ambipolar transformation dynamics. This phenomenon originates from two different components of the drift current. In the relaxation regime, majority carriers deplete because of a larger recombination rate in the minority carrier pulse region. Combining the analytical and numerical results, detailed photocarrier transport dynamics are obtained in the lifetime and relaxation regimes of semiconductors.