TY - JOUR
T1 - Fermi‐level tuning of G‐doped layers
AU - Tavkhelidze, Avto
AU - Bibilashvili, Amiran
AU - Jangidze, Larissa
AU - Gorji, Nima E.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
PY - 2021/2
Y1 - 2021/2
N2 - Recently, geometry‐induced quantum effects were observed in periodic nanostructures. Nanograting (NG) geometry significantly affects the electronic, magnetic, and optical properties of semiconductor layers. Silicon NG layers exhibit geometry‐induced doping. In this study, G‐doped junctions were fabricated and characterized and the Fermi‐level tuning of the G‐doped layers by changing the NG depth was investigated. Samples with various indent depths were fabricated using laser interference lithography and a consecutive series of reactive ion etching. Four adjacent areas with NG depths of 10, 20, 30, and 40 nm were prepared on the same chip. A Kelvin probe was used to map the work function and determine the Fermi level of the samples. The G‐doping‐induced Fermi‐level increase was recorded for eight sample sets cut separately from p‐, n‐, p+‐, and n+‐type silicon substrates. The maximum increase in the Fermi level was observed at a10 nm depth, and this decreased with increasing indent depth in the p‐ and n‐type substrates. Particularly, this reduction was more pronounced in the p‐type substrates. However, the Fermi‐level increase in the n+‐ and p+‐type substrates was negligible. The obtained results are explained using the G‐doping theory and G‐doped layer formation mechanism introduced in previous works.
AB - Recently, geometry‐induced quantum effects were observed in periodic nanostructures. Nanograting (NG) geometry significantly affects the electronic, magnetic, and optical properties of semiconductor layers. Silicon NG layers exhibit geometry‐induced doping. In this study, G‐doped junctions were fabricated and characterized and the Fermi‐level tuning of the G‐doped layers by changing the NG depth was investigated. Samples with various indent depths were fabricated using laser interference lithography and a consecutive series of reactive ion etching. Four adjacent areas with NG depths of 10, 20, 30, and 40 nm were prepared on the same chip. A Kelvin probe was used to map the work function and determine the Fermi level of the samples. The G‐doping‐induced Fermi‐level increase was recorded for eight sample sets cut separately from p‐, n‐, p+‐, and n+‐type silicon substrates. The maximum increase in the Fermi level was observed at a10 nm depth, and this decreased with increasing indent depth in the p‐ and n‐type substrates. Particularly, this reduction was more pronounced in the p‐type substrates. However, the Fermi‐level increase in the n+‐ and p+‐type substrates was negligible. The obtained results are explained using the G‐doping theory and G‐doped layer formation mechanism introduced in previous works.
KW - Doping
KW - Nanostructuring
KW - Semiconductor
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85101178134&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/nano11020505
DO - 10.3390/nano11020505
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85101178134
SN - 2079-4991
VL - 11
SP - 1
EP - 8
JO - Nanomaterials
JF - Nanomaterials
IS - 2
M1 - 505
ER -