Low driving voltage and high reliability 1.54 μm electroluminescence from SnO2:Er/p-Si heterostructured devices via energy transfer effect

Erbium-doped SnO2 films and devices are fabricated on silicon substrates, and the 1.54 mu m emission of erbium ions is realized via energy transfer from the SnO2 host. It is found that the luminescence intensity for SnO2:Er film can be enhanced, by increasing the optical activity and transition probability of Er3+ ions with fluorine codoping. Moreover, the device prepared by the fluorine codoped SnO2 film presents a low turn-on voltage of 1.6 V and an onset electric field of 0.18 MV/cm. The unpackaged device operated for 1028h in the atmosphere, then continued to function at 40 degrees C/30% RH during 1003 h, with less than 10% optical power attenuation. Through further optimizing the preparation process, the optimal device exhibits an optical power density of 38.5 mu W/cm(2) at 1.55 mu m, due to the improved crystalline quality together with the number of sensitizers. This work demonstrates the practical application potential in silicon-based light sources from erbium-doped SnO2 devices.