Nanograting layers of Si

Nanotechnology. 2020 Jan 17;31(3):035301. doi: 10.1088/1361-6528/ab4889. Epub 2019 Sep 27.

Abstract

The paper presents research regarding the complex behavior of materials based on Si and SiO2, geometrically processed at nano-scale. The geometry, which induces the doping effect (G-doping), occurred when it was possible to fabricate nanograting structures. Studies on the influence of nanograting structures on the properties of materials have shown that this process may lead to effects similar to those created by doping with donors. The resistivity values measured in Si-based nanograting layers, for example, were approximately 10-2 Ω cm, similar to those of Si semiconductors doped with phosphorus 'impurities' having a volume concentration of 1018 cm-3. This increase in electronic properties, as a result of the nanograting structure, seems to appear due to the fact that the electrons rejected in the process are placed in the structure vacancies. It has been experimentally proven that, in the case of semiconductors, the nanograting structuring makes the rejected electrons from the valence band to be placed in the conduction band. In the paper, after samples fabrication with nanograting structures on Si films placed on SiO2 support, the I-V curves of the obtained layers were drawn, both by measuring in four points and also in two points. The resistivity measurements were made in two directions: along and perpendicular to the strips of the structure and showed the existence of an anisotropy.