Investigation of aging process of Si-Si Ox structures with silicon quantum dots

In this work the aging processes of magnetron-sputtered Si-Si Ox structures with silicon quantum dots are investigated by photoluminescence, electronic paramagnetic resonance, infrared absorption, and Raman-scattering methods. It is observed that oxidation of the silicon dots, change in the defect concentration in the oxide matrix, and oxidation of the silicon amorphous phase occur during storage in air at room temperature. A comparison of the variation of parameters of sputtered structures and porous silicon layers caused by the aging process is made. It is shown that the rate of oxidation of silicon dots and the decrease of their sizes in sputtered structures are essentially less than that in porous silicon. It is also shown that in Si-Si Ox, layers in contrast to porous silicon, the intensity and spectral position of the emission band caused by exciton recombination in Si crystallites do not change practically during aging.