Journal Home > Volume 8 , Issue 8
Nano Research 2015, 8(8): 2676-2685 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-015-0774-2
Research Article | Issue | Published: 29 August 2015

Wavelength-tunable infrared light emitting diode based on ordered ZnO nanowire/Si1–xGex alloy heterojunction

Show Author's Information Taiping Zhang1,§,  Renrong Liang2,§( ),  Lin Dong1,  Jing Wang2,  Jun Xu2,  Caofeng Pan1( )
Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and NanosystemsChinese Academy of SciencesBeijing100083China
Institute of MicroelectronicsTsinghua UniversityBeijing100084China

§Authors contributed equally to this work.

Keywords:
ZnO nanowire, SiGe alloy, infrared light emitting diode, wavelength-tunable
Cite this article:
Zhang T, Liang R, Dong L, et al. Wavelength-tunable infrared light emitting diode based on ordered ZnO nanowire/Si1–xGex alloy heterojunction. Nano Research, 2015, 8(8): 2676-2685. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-015-0774-2
Download citation
EndNote(RIS)
BibTeX

515

Views

14

Downloads

Citations

16

Crossref

N/A

WoS

17

Scopus

0

CSCD

Abstract Full text About this article

A novel infrared light emitting diode (LED) based on an ordered p-n heterojunction built of a p-Si1–xGex alloy and n-ZnO nanowires has been developed. The electroluminescence (EL) emission of this LED is in the infrared range, which is dominated by the band gap of Si1–xGex alloy. The EL wavelength variation of the LED shows a red shift, which increases with increasing mole fraction of Ge. With Ge mole fractions of 0.18, 0.23 and 0.29, the average EL wavelengths are around 1, 144, 1, 162 and 1, 185 nm, respectively. The observed magnitudes of the red shifts are consistent with theoretical calculations. Therefore, by modulating the mole fraction of Ge in the Si1–xGex alloy, we can adjust the band gap of the SiGe film and tune the emission wavelength of the fabricated LED. Such an IR LED device may have great potential applications in optical communication, environmental monitoring and biological and medical analyses.


menu
Abstract
Full text
Outline
About this article

Wavelength-tunable infrared light emitting diode based on ordered ZnO nanowire/Si1–xGex alloy heterojunction

Show Author's information Taiping Zhang1,§, Renrong Liang2,§( ), Lin Dong1, Jing Wang2, Jun Xu2, Caofeng Pan1( )
Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and NanosystemsChinese Academy of SciencesBeijing100083China
Institute of MicroelectronicsTsinghua UniversityBeijing100084China

§Authors contributed equally to this work.

Abstract

A novel infrared light emitting diode (LED) based on an ordered p-n heterojunction built of a p-Si1–xGex alloy and n-ZnO nanowires has been developed. The electroluminescence (EL) emission of this LED is in the infrared range, which is dominated by the band gap of Si1–xGex alloy. The EL wavelength variation of the LED shows a red shift, which increases with increasing mole fraction of Ge. With Ge mole fractions of 0.18, 0.23 and 0.29, the average EL wavelengths are around 1, 144, 1, 162 and 1, 185 nm, respectively. The observed magnitudes of the red shifts are consistent with theoretical calculations. Therefore, by modulating the mole fraction of Ge in the Si1–xGex alloy, we can adjust the band gap of the SiGe film and tune the emission wavelength of the fabricated LED. Such an IR LED device may have great potential applications in optical communication, environmental monitoring and biological and medical analyses.

Keywords: ZnO nanowire, SiGe alloy, infrared light emitting diode, wavelength-tunable

References(46)

1

Vispute, R. D.; Talyansky, V.; Choopun, S.; Sharma, R. P.; Venkatesan, T.; He, M.; Tang, X.; Halpern, J. B.; Spencer, M. G.; Li, Y. X. et al. Heteroepitaxy of ZnO on GaN and its implications for fabrication of hybrid optoelectronic devices. Appl. Phys. Lett. 1998, 73, 348-350.
DOI Google Scholar
2

Alivov, Y. I.; Van Nostrand, J. E.; Look, D. C.; Chukichev, M. V.; Ataev, B. M. Observation of 430 nm electroluminescence from ZnO/GaN heterojunction light-emitting diodes. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2003, 83, 2943-2945.
DOI Google Scholar
3

Asıl, H.; Gür, E.; Çınar, K.; Coşkun, C. Electrochemical growth of n-ZnO onto the p-type GaN substrate: p-n heterojunction characteristics. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2009, 94, 253501.
DOI Google Scholar
4

Zhong, J.; Chen, H.; Saraf, G.; Lu, Y; Choi, C. K.; Song, J. J.; Mackie, D. M.; Shen, H. Integrated ZnO nanotips on GaN light emitting diodes for enhanced emission efficiency. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2007, 90, 203515.
DOI Google Scholar
5

An, S. J.; Chae, J. H.; Yi, G. C.; Park, G. H. Enhanced light output of GaN-based light-emitting diodes with ZnO nanorod arrays. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2008, 92, 121108.
DOI Google Scholar
6

Kim, K. S.; Kim, S. M.; Jeong, H.; Jeong, M. S.; Jung, G. Y. Enhancement of light extraction through the wave-guiding effect of ZnO sub-microrods in InGaN blue light-emitting diodes. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2010, 20, 1076-1082.
DOI Google Scholar
7

Alivov, Ya. I.; Kalinina, E. V.; Cherenkov, A. E.; Look, D. C.; Ataev, B. M.; Omaev, A. K.; Chukichev, M. V.; Bagnall, D. M. Fabrication and characterization of n-ZnO/p-AlGaN heterojunction light-emitting diodes on 6H-SiC substrates. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2003, 83, 4719-4721.
DOI Google Scholar
8

Look, D. C.; Claflin, B.; Alivov, Y. I.; Park, S. J. The future of ZnO light emitters. Phys. Stat. Sol. A 2004, 201, 2203-2212.
DOI Google Scholar
9

Xiang, B.; Wang, P. W.; Zhang, X. Z.; Dayeh, S. A.; Aplin, D. P. R.; Soci, C.; Yu, D. P.; Wang, D. L. Rational synthesis of p-type zinc oxide nanowire arrays using simple chemical vapor deposition. Nano Lett. 2007, 7, 323-328.
DOI Google Scholar
10

Xu, S.; Xu, C.; Liu, Y.; Hu, Y. F.; Yang, R. S.; Yang, Q.; Ryou, J. H.; Kim, H. J.; Lochner, Z.; Choi, S. et al. Ordered nanowire array blue/near-UV light emitting diodes. Adv. Mater. 2010, 22, 4749-4753.
DOI Google Scholar
11

Jha, S.; Qian, J. C.; Kutsay, O.; Kovac Jr, J. K.; Luan, C. Y.; Zapien, J. A.; Zhang, W. J.; Lee, S. T.; Bello, I. Violet-blue LEDs based on p-GaN/n-ZnO nanorods and their stability. Nanotechnology 2011, 22, 245202.
DOI Google Scholar
12

Zhang, S. G.; Zhang, X. W.; Si, F. T.; Dong, J. J.; Wang, J. X.; Liu, X.; Yin, Z. G.; Gao, H. L. Ordered ZnO nanorods-based heterojunction light-emitting diodes with grapheme current spreading layer. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2012, 101, 121104.
DOI Google Scholar
13

Pan, C. F.; Dong, L.; Zhu, G.; Niu, S. M.; Yu, R. M.; Yang, Q.; Liu, Y.; Wang, Z. L. High-resolution electroluminescent imaging of pressure distribution using a piezoelectric nanowire LED array. Nat. Photon. 2013, 7, 752-758.
DOI Google Scholar
14

Yang, Q.; Wang, W. H.; Xu, S.; Niu, S.; Wang, Z. L. Enhancing light emission of ZnO microwire-based diodes by piezo-phototronic effect. Nano Lett. 2011, 11, 4012-4017.
DOI Google Scholar
15

Yang, Q.; Liu, Y.; Pang, C.; Chen, J.; Wen, X.; Wang, Z. L. Largely enhanced efficiency in ZnO nanowire/p-polymer hybridized inorganic/organic ultraviolet light-emitting diode by piezo-phototronic effect. Nano Lett. 2013, 13, 607-613.
DOI Google Scholar
16
Wang, C. F.; Bao, R. R.; Zhao, K.; Zhang, T. P.; Dong, L.; Pan, C. F. Enhanced emission intensity of vertical aligned flexible ZnO nanowire/p-polymer hybridized LED array by piezo-phototronic effect. Nano Energy, in press, DOI: 10.1016/j.nanoen.2014.11.033.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nanoen.2014.11.033
DOI
17

Sun, H.; Zhang, Q. F.; Wu, J. L. Electroluminescence from ZnO nanorods with an n-ZnO/p-Si heterojunction structure. Nanotechnology 2006, 17, 2271-2274.
DOI Google Scholar
18

Bao, J. M.; Zimmler, M. A.; Capasso, F.; Wang, X. W.; Pen, Z. F. Broadband ZnO single-nanowire light-emitting diode. Nano Lett. 2006, 6, 1719-1722.
DOI Google Scholar
19

Chen, P. L.; Ma, X. Y.; Yang, D. R. Ultraviolet electroluminescence from ZnO/p-Si heterojunctions. J. Appl. Phys. 2007, 101, 053103.
DOI Google Scholar
20

Zimmler, M. A.; Voss, T.; Ronning, C.; Capasso, F. Exciton-related electroluminescence from ZnO nanowire light-emitting diodes. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2009, 94, 241120.
DOI Google Scholar
21

Lee, S. W.; Cho, H. D.; Panin, G.; Kang, T. W. Vertical ZnO nanorod/Si contact light-emitting diode. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2011, 98, 093110.
DOI Google Scholar
22

Jung, B. O.; Lee, J. H.; Lee, J. Y.; Kim, J. H.; Cho, H. K. High-purity ultraviolet electroluminescence from n-ZnO nanowires/p+-Si heterostructure LEDs with i-MgO film as carrier control layer. J. Electrochem. Soc. 2012, 159, H102-H106.
DOI Google Scholar
23

Chan, V. F.; Su, W.; Zhang, C. X.; Wu, Z. L.; Tang, Y.; Sun, X. Q.; Xu, H. J. Electroluminescence from ZnO-nanofilm/ Si-micropillar heterostructure arrays. Opt. Express 2012, 20, 24280-24287.
DOI Google Scholar
24

Tsai, J. K.; Shih, J. H.; Wu, T. C.; Meen, T. H. n-ZnO nanorods/p+-Si (111) heterojunction light emitting diodes. Nanoscale Res. Lett. 2012, 7, 664.
DOI Google Scholar
25

Xian, F. L.; Wang, X. X.; Xu, L. H.; Li, X. Y.; Bai, W. F. Color tunable electroluminescence from Co-doped ZnO nanorods/ p-Si heterojunction. J. Lumin. 2013, 144, 154-157.
DOI Google Scholar
26

Hsieh, Y. P.; Chen, H. Y.; Lin, M. Z.; Shiu, S. C.; Hofmann, M.; Chern, M. Y.; Jia, X.; Yang, Y. J.; Chang, H. J.; Huang, H. M. et al. Electroluminescence from ZnO/Si-nanotips light-emitting diodes. Nano Lett. 2009, 9, 1839-1843.
DOI Google Scholar
27

Weber, J.; Alonso, M. I. Near-band-gap photoluminescence of Si-Ge alloys. Phys. Rev. B 1989, 40, 5683-5693.
DOI Google Scholar
28

Rieger, M. M.; Vogl, P. Electronic-band parameters in strained Si1-xGex alloys on Si1-yGeysubstrates. Phys. Rev. B 1993, 48, 14276-14287.
DOI Google Scholar
29

Fischetti, M. V.; Laux, S. E. Band structure, deformation potentials, and carrier mobility in strained Si, Ge, and SiGe alloys. J. Appl. Phys. 1996, 80, 2234-2252.
DOI Google Scholar
30

Moontragoon, P.; Ikonić, Z.; Harrison, P. Band structure calculations of Si-Ge-Sn alloys: Achieving direct band gap materials. Semicond. Sci. Technol. 2007, 22, 742-748.
DOI Google Scholar
31

Li, J. B.; Meng, C.; Liu, Y.; Wu, X. Q.; Lu, Y. Z.; Ye, Y.; Dai, L.; Tong, L. M.; Liu, X.; Yang, Q. Wavelength tunable CdSe nanowire laser based on the absorption-emission-absorption process. Adv. Mater. 2013, 25, 833-837.
DOI Google Scholar
32

Yang, Z. Y.; Wang, D. L.; Meng, C.; Wu, Z. M.; Wang, Y.; Ma, Y. G.; Dai, L.; Liu, X. W.; Hasan, T.; Liu, X. et al. Broudly defining lasing wavelengths in single bandgap-graded semiconductor nanowire. Nano. Lett. 2014, 14, 3153-3159.
DOI Google Scholar
33

Tsang, M. K.; Bai, G. X.; Hao, J. H. Stimuli responsive upconversion luminescence nanomaterials and films for various applications. Chem. Soc. Rev. 2015, 44, 1585-1607.
DOI Google Scholar
34

Bai, G. X.; Tsang, M. K.; Hao, J. H. Tuning the luminescence of phosphors: Beyond conventional chemical method. Adv. Optical Mater. 2015, 3, 431-462.
DOI Google Scholar
35

Han, C. B.; He, C.; Li, X. J. Near-infrared light emission from a GaN/Si nanoheterostructure array. Adv. Mater. 2011, 23, 4811-4814.
DOI Google Scholar
36

Han, C. B.; He, C.; Meng, X. B.; Wan, Y. R.; Tian, Y. T.; Zhang, Y. J.; Li, X. J. Effect of annealing treatment on electroluminescence from GaN/Si nanoheterostructure array. Opt. Express 2012, 20, 5636-5643.
DOI Google Scholar
37

Li, Y.; Meng, G. W.; Zhang, L. D.; Phillipp, F. Ordered semiconductor ZnO nanowire arrays and their photoluminescence properties. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2000, 76, 2011-2013.
DOI Google Scholar
38

Zhang, R.; Yin, P. G.; Wang, N.; Guo, L. Photoluminnescence and Raman scattering of ZnO nanorods. Solid state Sci. 2009, 11, 865-869.
DOI Google Scholar
39

Hartmann, J. M.; Bogumilowicz, Y.; Holliger, P.; Laugier, F.; Truche, R.; Rolland, G.; Séméria, M. N.; Renard, V.; Olshanetsky, E. B.; Estibals, O. et al. Reduced pressure chemical vapour deposition of SiGe virtual substrates for high mobility devices. Semicond. Sci. Technol. 2004, 19, 311-318.
DOI Google Scholar
40

Liang, R. R.; Zhang, K.; Yang, Z. R.; Xu, Y.; Wang, J.; Xu, J. Fabrication and characterization of strained Si material using SiGe virtualsubstrate for high mobility devices. J. Semicond. 2007, 28, 1518-1522.
Google Scholar
41

Li, B. B.; Yu, D. P.; Zhang, S. L. Raman spectral study of silicon nanowires. Phys. Rev. B 1999, 59, 1645-1648.
DOI Google Scholar
42

Winer, K.; Alonso, M. I. Raman spectra of c-Si1-xGex alloys. Phys. Rev. B 1989, 39, 10056-10062.
DOI Google Scholar
43

Torres, V. J. B.; Coutinho, J.; Briddon, P. R.; Barroso, M. Ab-initio vibrational properties of SiGe alloys. Thin Solid films 2008, 517, 395-397.
DOI Google Scholar
44

Pagès, O.; Souhabi, J.; Torres V. J. B.; Postnikov, A. V.; Rustagi, K. C. Re-examination of the SiGe Raman spectra: Percolation/one-dimensional-pixel scheme and ab initio calculations. Phys. Rev. B 2012, 86, 045201.
DOI Google Scholar
45

Cuscó, R.; Alarcón-Lladó, E.; Ibáñez, J.; Artús, L.; Jiménez, J.; Wang, B. G.; Callahan, M. J. Temperature dependence of Raman scattering in ZnO. Phys. Rev. B 2007, 75, 165202.
DOI Google Scholar
46

Huang, Y. Q.; Liu, M. D.; Li, Z.; Zeng, Y. K.; Liu, S. B. Raman spectroscopy study of ZnO-based ceramic films fabricated by novel sol-gel process. Mat. Sci. Eng. B 2003, 97, 111-116.
DOI Google Scholar
Publication history
Copyright
Acknowledgements

Publication history

Received: 12 February 2015
Revised: 15 March 2015
Accepted: 24 March 2015
Published: 29 August 2015
Issue date: August 2015

Copyright

© Tsinghua University Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2015

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful for the support from the "Thousands Talents" Program for Pioneer Researchers and Their Innovation Teams, China; the President's Funding of the Chinese Academy of Sciences; the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51272238, 21321062, 51432005 and 61405040); the Innovation Talent Project of Henan Province (No. 13HASTIT020); the Talent Project of Zhengzhou University (No. ZDGD13001) and the Surface Engineering Key Lab of LIPCAST; the Tsinghua University Initiative Scientific Research Program, the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 61306105).

Return