Nanoporous silicon fabricated at different illumination and electrochemical conditions

The properties of porous silicon prepared at different illumination and electrochemical conditions were studied. The preparation procedure was based on the electrochemical etching in HF containing electrolyte. In the dissolution of n-type silicon, an external source of light is necessary to obtain a sufficient holes flux density. Here, illumination was applied from the backside of the wafer (the side not immersed in the electrolyte), from topside (the side immersed in the electrolyte), and for the highly doped silicon, etching proceeds without illumination. The electrolyte contains HF in the range 2-50 wt%. The highest current density flows with topside assisted illumination. Backside illumination and etching in the dark resulted in a reduction in the current density. In the dark the current density significantly increased at a higher anodic bias. These conditions gave rise to pores formation with a diameter from 20 nm up to 3 mu m. The smallest pore size was obtained for highly doped n-Si (111) wafers, etched without illumination. The present paper confirms the possibility of porous silicon formation in the dark and with backside illumination, these being alternative methods for topside assisted illumination etching methods. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.