Noninvasive and Contactless Characterization of Electronic Properties at the Semiconductor/Dielectric Interface Using Optical Second-Harmonic Generation

Optical second-harmonic generation (SHG) is a reliable technique for probing material surface and interface characteristics. Here, we have demonstrated a non-destructive, contactless SHG-based semiconductor/dielectric interface characterization method to measure the conduction band offset and quantitatively evaluate charge densities at the interface in oxide and at the oxide surface. This technique extracts the interface-trapped charge type (donor/acceptor) and qualitatively analyzes the process-induced variation in interface states (Dit), oxide, and oxide surface state density. These qualitative and quantitative analyses provide us with a glimpse into the band bending. The metrology method is validated through a detailed characterization of the Si/HfO2 interface. An optical setup has been developed to monitor the time-dependent second-harmonic generation (TDSHG) from the semiconductor/oxide interface. The temporal characteristics of TDSHG are explained with its relationship to the filling of Dit and spatio-temporal trapping of photoexcited charge in oxide and at the oxide surface. A numerical solver, based on plausible carrier dynamics, is used to model the experimental data and to extract the electronic properties at the Si/HfO2 interface.

Band Offsets of the MOCVD-Grown β-(Al0.21Ga0.79)2O3/β-Ga2O3 (010) Heterojunction

The band offsets for the β-(Al0.21Ga0.79)2O3/β-Ga2O3 (010) heterojunction have been experimentally measured by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. High-quality β-(Al0.21Ga0.79)2O3 films were grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition for characterization. The indirect band gap of β-(Al0.21Ga0.79)2O3 was determined by optical transmission to be 4.69 ± 0.03 eV with a direct transition of 5.37 ± 0.03 eV, while β-Ga2O3 was confirmed to have an indirect band gap of 4.52 ± 0.03 eV with a direct transition of 4.94 ± 0.03 eV. The resulting band alignment at the heterojunction was determined to be of type II with the valence and conduction band edges of β-(Al0.21Ga0.79)2O3 being -0.26 ± 0.08 and 0.43 ± 0.08 eV, respectively, above those of β-Ga2O3 (010). These values can now be used to help better design and predict the performance of β-(AlxGa1-x)2O3 heterojunction-based devices.

Terahertz Pulse Emission from Semiconductor Heterostructures Caused by Ballistic Photocurrents

Terahertz radiation pulses emitted after exciting semiconductor heterostructures by femtosecond optical pulses were used to determine the electron energy band offsets between different constituent materials. It has been shown that when the photon energy is sufficient enough to excite electrons in the narrower bandgap layer with an energy greater than the conduction band offset, the terahertz pulse changes its polarity. Theoretical analysis performed both analytically and by numerical Monte Carlo simulation has shown that the polarity inversion is caused by the electrons that are excited in the narrow bandgap layer with energies sufficient to surmount the band offset with the wide bandgap substrate. This effect is used to evaluate the energy band offsets in GaInAs/InP and GaInAsBi/InP heterostructures.

Atomic-Level Electronic Properties of Carbon Nitride Monolayers

Heteroatom-doped carbon-based materials are of significance for clean energy conversion and storage because of their fascinating electronic properties, low cost, high durability, and environmental friendliness. Atomically precise fabrication of carbon-based materials with well-defined heteroatom-dopant positions and atomic-scale understanding of their atomic-level electronic properties is a challenge. Herein, we demonstrate the bottom-up on-surface synthesis of 1D and 2D monolayer carbon nitride nanostructures with precise control of the nitrogen-atom doping sites and pore sizes. We also observe an electronic band offset at the C-N heterojunction. Using high-resolution scanning tunneling microscopy, the atomic structure of the as-prepared carbon nitride nanoporous monolayers are revealed, indicating successful and precise control of the structures and N atom doping sites. Furthermore, corroborated by theoretical calculations, scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurements reveal a valence band shift of 140 meV that results in an electric field of 2.9 × 10⁸ V m^-1 at the C-N heterojunction, indicating efficient separation of the electron-hole pair at the N doping site. Our finding offers direct atomic-level insights into the local electronic structure of the heteroatom-doped carbon-based materials.

Ab initioanalytic calculation of point defects in AlGaN/GaN heterointerfaces

One of the major challenges for the GaN-based high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) used as high power devices is to understand the effect of defects, especially on the band alignment. Usingab initiocalculation, herein we investigate the variations of band offsets with interfacial structure, defect position, interface states and Al content in Al_xGa_1-xN/GaN heterostructures (x= 0.06, 0.13, 0.19, 0.25). It was found that N vacancy (V_N) and Ga anti-site (Ga_N) introduce nonlocal interface states and the change of valence band offset (VBO) depends on the defect location. While the interface states induced by Ga vacancy (V_Ga) and N anti-site (N_Ga) show strong localization behavior, and their impact on VBO is independent on the defect position. The low symmetry of wurtzite nitride and the lattice mismatch between AlGaN and GaN will generate polarization charge (spontaneous polarization and piezoelectric polarization) at the interface. Along the direction of polarization field, V_Nand Ga_Nlying in the AlGaN side change the VBO most pronouncedly. These theoretical results provide useful guidance for control of point defects in AlGaN/GaN HEMTs, which have profound impact on the performance and reliability of GaN-based devices.

Experimental and Theoretical Study into Interface Structure and Band Alignment of the Cu2Zn1-x Cd x SnS4 Heterointerface for Photovoltaic Applications

To improve the constraints of kesterite Cu₂ZnSnS₄ (CZTS) solar cell, such as undesirable band alignment at p-n interfaces, bandgap tuning, and fast carrier recombination, cadmium (Cd) is introduced into CZTS nanocrystals forming Cu₂Zn_1-x Cd _x SnS₄ through cost-effective solution-based method without postannealing or sulfurization treatments. A synergetic experimental-theoretical approach was employed to characterize and assess the optoelectronic properties of Cu₂Zn_1-x Cd _x SnS₄ materials. Tunable direct band gap energy ranging from 1.51 to 1.03 eV with high absorption coefficient was demonstrated for the Cu₂Zn_1-x Cd _x SnS₄ nanocrystals with changing Zn/Cd ratio. Such bandgap engineering in Cu₂Zn_1-x Cd _x SnS₄ helps in effective carrier separation at interface. Ultrafast spectroscopy reveals a longer lifetime and efficient separation of photoexcited charge carriers in Cu₂CdSnS₄ (CCTS) nanocrystals compared to that of CZTS. We found that there exists a type-II staggered band alignment at the CZTS (CCTS)/CdS interface, from cyclic voltammetric (CV) measurements, corroborated by first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations, predicting smaller conduction band offset (CBO) at the CCTS/CdS interface as compared to the CZTS/CdS interface. These results point toward efficient separation of photoexcited carriers across the p-n junction in the ultrafast time scale and highlight a route to improve device performances.

Study of the Structure, Electronic and Optical Properties of BiOI/Rutile-TiO2 Heterojunction by the First-Principle Calculation

Using the first-principle calculation that is based on the density functional theory (DFT), our group gains some insights of the structural, electronic and optical properties of two brand new types of BiOI/TiO2 heterojunctions: 1I-terminated BiOI {001} surface/TiO2 (1I-BiOI/TiO2) and BiO-terminated BiOI {001} surface/TiO2 (BiO-BiOI/TiO2). The calculation illustrates that BiOI/TiO2 heterojunction has excellent mechanical stability, and it shows that there is a great possibility for the BiOI/TiO2 heterojunction to be used in visible-light range, hence the photocatalytic ability can be enhanced dramatically. Especially, from the calculation, we discovered that there are two specific properties: the band-gap of 1I-BiOI/TiO2 heterojunction reduces to 0.28 eV, and the BiO-BiOI/TiO2 semiconductor material changes to n-type. The calculated band offset (BOs) for 1I-BiOI/TiO2 heterojunction indicates that the interfacial structure contributes a lot to a suitable band alignment which can disperse the photo-generated carriers into the opposite sides of the interface, so this could effectively weaken the electron-hole recombination. Meanwhile, the built-in potential around the interface accelerates the movement of the photo-generated electron-hole pairs. We believe this is the reason that the BiOI/TiO2 material shows perfect photocatalytic performance. This paper can provide theoretical support for the related research, especially the further research of the BiOI-based material.

Band-Offset Analysis of Atomic Layer Deposition La2O3 on GaAs(111), (110), and (100) Surfaces for Epitaxial Growth

In this paper, we measured band offsets for La₂O₃ prepared by atomic layer deposition on GaAs(111), (110), and (100) surfaces. La₂O₃ grows epitaxially on GaAs(111) with very low interfacial defect density and exhibits a band offset that is predicted for defect-free interfaces by the metal-induced gap state theory. On the other hand, the polycrystalline La₂O₃ deposited on GaAs(110) and (100) shows band offsets close to the values predicted for Fermi-level pinning. In this way, band offsets can qualitatively estimate interfacial defect levels.

Degenerately Doped Transition Metal Dichalcogenides as Ohmic Homojunction Contacts to Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Semiconductors

In search of an improved strategy to form low-resistance contacts to MoS₂ and related semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides, we use ab initio density functional electronic structure calculations in order to determine the equilibrium geometry and electronic structure of MoO₃/MoS₂ and MoO₂/MoS₂ bilayers. Our results indicate that, besides a rigid band shift associated with charge transfer, the presence of molybdenum oxide modifies the electronic structure of MoS₂ very little. We find that the charge transfer in the bilayer provides a sufficient degree of hole doping to MoS₂, resulting in a highly transparent contact region.

Transport Across Heterointerfaces of Amorphous Niobium Oxide and Crystallographically Oriented Epitaxial Germanium

Because of the high carrier mobility of germanium (Ge) and high dielectric permittivity of amorphous niobium pentoxide (a-Nb₂O₅), Ge/a-Nb₂O₅ heterostructures offer several advantages for the rapidly developing field of oxide-semiconductor-based multifunctional devices. To this end, we investigate the growth, structural, band alignment, and metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) electrical properties of physical vapor-deposited Nb₂O₅ on crystallographically oriented (100), (110), and (111)Ge epilayers. The as-deposited Nb₂O₅ dielectrics were found to be in the amorphous state, demonstrating an abrupt oxide/semiconductor heterointerface with respect to Ge, when examined via low- and high-magnification cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy. Additionally, variable-angle spectroscopic ellipsometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to independently determine the a-Nb₂O₅ band gap, yielding a direct gap value of 4.30 eV. Moreover, analysis of the heterointerfacial energy band alignment between a-Nb₂O₅ and epitaxial Ge revealed valance band offsets (ΔE_V) greater than 2.5 eV, following the relation ΔE_V⁽¹¹¹⁾ > ΔE_V⁽¹¹⁰⁾ > ΔE_V⁽¹⁰⁰⁾. Similarly, utilizing the empirically determined a-Nb₂O₅ band gap, conduction band offsets (ΔE_C) greater than 0.75 eV were found, likewise following the relation ΔE_C⁽¹¹⁰⁾ > ΔE_C⁽¹⁰⁰⁾ > ΔE_C⁽¹¹¹⁾. Leveraging the reduced ΔE_C observed at the a-Nb₂O₅/Ge heterointerface, we also perform the first experimental investigation into Schottky barrier height reduction on n-Ge using a 2 nm a-Nb₂O₅ interlayer, resulting in a 20× increase in reverse-bias current density and improved Ohmic behavior.

Electronic Structure and Band Alignment at the NiO and SrTiO3 p-n Heterojunctions

Understanding the energetics at the interface, including the alignment of valence and conduction bands, built-in potentials, and ionic and electronic reconstructions, is an important challenge in designing oxide interfaces that have controllable multifunctionalities for novel (opto-)electronic devices. In this work, we report detailed investigations on the heterointerface of wide-band-gap p-type NiO and n-type SrTiO₃ (STO). We show that despite a large lattice mismatch (∼7%) and dissimilar crystal structure, high-quality NiO and Li-doped NiO (LNO) thin films can be epitaxially grown on STO(001) substrates through a domain-matching epitaxy mechanism. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies indicate that NiO/STO heterojunctions form a type II "staggered" band alignment. In addition, a large built-in potential of up to 0.97 eV was observed at the interface of LNO and Nb-doped STO (NbSTO). The LNO/NbSTO p-n heterojunctions exhibit not only a large rectification ratio of 2 × 10³ but also a large ideality factor of 4.3. The NiO/STO p-n heterojunctions have important implications for applications in photocatalysis and photodetectors as the interface provides favorable energetics for facile separation and transport of photogenerated electrons and holes.

Crystal Phase Effects in Si Nanowire Polytypes and Their Homojunctions

Recent experimental investigations have confirmed the possibility to synthesize and exploit polytypism in group IV nanowires. Driven by this promising evidence, we use first-principles methods based on density functional theory and many-body perturbation theory to investigate the electronic and optical properties of hexagonal-diamond and cubic-diamond Si NWs as well as their homojunctions. We show that hexagonal-diamond NWs are characterized by a more pronounced quantum confinement effect than cubic-diamond NWs. Furthermore, they absorb more light in the visible region with respect to cubic-diamond ones and, for most of the studied diameters, they are direct band gap materials. The study of the homojunctions reveals that the diameter has a crucial effect on the band alignment at the interface. In particular, at small diameters the band-offset is type-I whereas at experimentally relevant sizes the offset turns up to be of type-II. These findings highlight intriguing possibilities to modulate electron and hole separations as well as electronic and optical properties by simply modifying the crystal phase and the size of the junction.

Band Alignment Engineering at Cu2O/ZnO Heterointerfaces

Energy band alignments at heterointerfaces play a crucial role in defining the functionality of semiconductor devices, yet the search for material combinations with suitable band alignments remains a challenge for numerous applications. In this work, we demonstrate how changes in deposition conditions can dramatically influence the functional properties of an interface, even within the same material system. The energy band alignment at the heterointerface between Cu2O and ZnO was studied using photoelectron spectroscopy with stepwise deposition of ZnO onto Cu2O and vice versa. A large variation of energy band alignment depending on the deposition conditions of the substrate and the film is observed, with valence band offsets in the range ΔEVB = 1.45-2.7 eV. The variation of band alignment is accompanied by the occurrence or absence of band bending in either material. It can therefore be ascribed to a pinning of the Fermi level in ZnO and Cu2O, which can be traced back to oxygen vacancies in ZnO and to metallic precipitates in Cu2O. The intrinsic valence band offset for the interface, which is not modified by Fermi level pinning, is derived as ΔEVB ≈ 1.5 eV, being favorable for solar cell applications.

Impact of Annealing-Induced Intermixing on the Electronic Level Alignment at the In2S3/Cu(In,Ga)Se2 Thin-Film Solar Cell Interface

The interface between a nominal In2S3 buffer and a Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGSe) thin-film solar cell absorber was investigated by direct and inverse photoemission to determine the interfacial electronic structure. On the basis of a previously reported heavy intermixing at the interface (S diffuses into the absorber; Cu diffuses into the buffer; and Na diffuses through it), we determine here the band alignment at the interface. The results suggest that the pronounced intermixing at the In2S3/CIGSe interface leads to a favorable electronic band alignment, necessary for high-efficiency solar cell devices.

Band Alignment in WSe2-Graphene Heterostructures

Using different types of WSe2 and graphene-based heterostructures, we experimentally determine the offset between the graphene neutrality point and the WSe2 conduction and valence band edges, as well as the WSe2 dielectric constant along the c-axis. In a first heterostructure, consisting of WSe2-on-graphene, we use the WSe2 layer as the top dielectric in dual-gated graphene field-effect transistors to determine the WSe2 capacitance as a function of thickness, and the WSe2 dielectric constant along the c-axis. In a second heterostructure consisting of graphene-on-WSe2, the lateral electron transport shows ambipolar behavior characteristic of graphene combined with a conductivity saturation at sufficiently high positive (negative) gate bias, associated with carrier population of the conduction (valence) band in WSe2. By combining the experimental results from both heterostructures, we determine the band offset between the graphene charge neutrality point, and the WSe2 conduction and valence band edges.

Photovoltaic Heterojunctions of Fullerenes with MoS2 and WS2 Monolayers

First-principles calculations are performed to explore the geometry, bonding, and electronic structures of six ultrathin photovoltaic heterostructures consisting of pristine and B- or N-doped fullerenes and MoS2 or WS2 monolayers. The fullerenes prefer to be attached with a hexagon parallel to the monolayer, where B and N favor proximity to the monolayer. The main electronic properties of the subsystems stay intact, suggesting weak interfacial interaction. Both the C60/MoS2 and C60/WS2 systems show type-II band alignments. However, the built-in potential in the former case is too small to effectively drive electron-hole separation across the interface, whereas the latter system is predicted to show good photovoltaic performance. Unfortunately, B and N doping destroys the type-II band alignment on MoS2 and preserves it only in one spin channel on WS2, which is unsuitable for excitonic solar cells. Our results suggest that the C60/WS2 system is highly promising for excitonic solar cells.

Valence band offset of β-Ga2O3/wurtzite GaN heterostructure measured by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

A sample of the β-Ga2O3/wurtzite GaN heterostructure has been grown by dry thermal oxidation of GaN on a sapphire substrate. X-ray diffraction measurements show that the β-Ga2O3 layer was formed epitaxially on GaN. The valence band offset of the β-Ga2O3/wurtzite GaN heterostructure is measured by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. It is demonstrated that the valence band of the β-Ga2O3/GaN structure is 1.40 ± 0.08 eV.