Growth and nucleation of pores in n-type porous silicon and related photoluminescence

Growth and nucleation of the pores on the porous silicon (PS) surface grown on n-type Si wafers by electrochemical anodization in light are studied as a function of the etching time. The evolution in the dissolved mass during etching and the resulting porosity is checked in the light of existing models on pore formation. The structural properties of the PS surface are investigated with scanning electron microscopy and XRD. The RMS surface roughness is estimated using atomic force microscopy. The photoluminescence characteristics like peak intensity, peak wavelength and full width at half maximum of the emission band of n-type PS have been measured and correlated along with the Fourier transform infra red data. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.