Spin-dependent recombination in Czochralski silicon containing oxide precipitates

Electrically detected magnetic resonance is used to identify recombination centers in a set of Czochralski-grown silicon samples processed to contain strained oxide precipitates with a wide range of densities (similar to 1 x 10(9) cm(-3) to similar to 7 x 10(10) cm(-3)). Measurements reveal that photo-excited charge carriers recombine through P-b0 and P-b1 dangling bonds, and comparison to precipitate-free material indicates that these are present at both the sample surface and the oxide precipitates. The electronic recombination rates vary approximately linearly with precipitate density. Additional resonance lines arising from iron-boron and interstitial iron are observed and discussed. Our observations are inconsistent with bolometric heating and interpreted in terms of spin-dependent recombination. Electrically detected magnetic resonance is thus a very powerful and sensitive spectroscopic technique to selectively probe recombination centers in modern photovoltaic device materials. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.3675449]