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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25 May 2011
Strain engineering in composition-controlled Si-Si/Ge nanocluster multilayers with high germanium content (~ 50%) is achieved by varying thicknesses of Si/SiGe layers and studied by low temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurements. The PL spectra show reduction in strained silicon energy bandgap and a splitting presumably associated with partial removal of heavy hole-light hole degeneracy in SiGe valence band. Time-resolved PL measurements performed under different excitation wavelengths show dramatically different PL lifetimes, ranging from ~ 2 μs to 10 ns and an unusually high PL quantum efficiency. The results are explained by using the Si/SiGe interface recombination model, which is supported by ultra-high resolution transmission and analytical electron microscopy measurements.