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New Results on Enhanced Deuterium Diffusion Under Illumination in Amorphous Silicon

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 February 2011

Howard M. Branz
Affiliation:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO 80401
Sally E. Asher
Affiliation:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO 80401
Brent P. Nelson
Affiliation:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO 80401
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Abstract

We measure the light-enhancement of D diffusion in hydrogenated amorphous silicon and determine that the mechanism for the effect is an increase of the rate of Si-D bond breaking under illumination. We exclude light-induced heating of the sample and light-induced excitation of D between dissimilar materials as sources of the light-enhancement. It is a bulk effect, most likely caused by excess carriers. We are able to observe the light-induced effect with 380 mW-cm-2 of red light, an intensity only slightly larger than the intensity normally used to induce the Staebler-Wronski effect. At room temperature, the effect is unobservable and we derive an upper bound of 2 × 10-8 photon-1 for the efficiency of light-induced Si-D bond breaking. Implications for the Staebler-Wronski effect are discussed.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1992

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References

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