Sharpening Si Nanocrystals on the Bulk Surface by Nanoscale Electrochemistry through Controlling the Hole Current with the Irradiation of Near-Infrared Laser

Abstract

© The Author(s) 2016. Published by ECS. All rights reserved. Numerous Si nanocrystals on the bulk surface can be efficiently sharpened by a HF-based electrochemical etching with the irradiation of near-infrared (NIR) laser simultaneously. Under the NIR laser-irradiation, the electrons excited from the B-Si complex inhibited the growth of the anodized layer and promoted the formation of nanocrystals by controlling the number of holes that participate in anodization. The effect of NIR laser-irradiation enhanced the photoluminescence by 7-10 times as compared to that obtained when anodization was performed in the dark for growing a normal porous silicon. The transmission electron microscopy images showed clearly that that nanocrystals ( < 3 nm) were embedded at the interface of the bulk surface and the anodized layer.