Determination of the size dispersion of amorphous silicon quantum dots from a silicon nitride film containing silicon nanocrystals

In this work we will investigate the size distribution of the amorphous silicon quantum dots (SiAQD) inside a silicon nitride film SiNx(x = 0.12). The studied film contains an ensemble of silicon nanocrystals (Si-nc) inside an amorphous silicon nitride matrix SiNy (y = 0.66). Since the nitrogen atoms number are less than the silicon atoms number in the amorphous matrix, we can suggest that silicon atoms can aggregate under amorphous quantum dots. In this context, we will first estimate the number of crystallized silicon atoms (c-Si). The number of amorphous silicon atoms (a-Si) can be deduced from the fraction of crystallized silicon atoms and leads to the determination of the number of nitrogen atoms. Results show that all the nitrogen atoms are localized in the Si-ncs cap shell. Thus, the amorphous quantum dots can be easily revealed from the scattering electron microscopy (SEM) image. The low yield of luminescence from amorphous quantum dots can explain the difference between both experimental and simulated photoluminescence (PL) from silicon nitride film containing Si-ncs.