Electronic transitions at Si(111)/SiO2 and Si(111)/Si3N4 interfaces studied by optical second-harmonic spectroscopy

Second-harmonic generation imaging of semiconductor nanowires with focused vector beams

We use second-harmonic generation (SHG) with focused vector beams to investigate individual vertically aligned GaAs nanowires. Our results provide direct evidence that SHG from oriented nanowires is mainly driven by the longitudinal field along the nanowire growth axis. Consequently, focused radial polarization provides a superior tool to characterize such nanowires compared to linear polarization, also allowing this possibility in the native growth environment. We model our experiments by describing the SHG process for zinc-blende structure and dipolar bulk nonlinearity.

Nonlinear optical spectroscopy of suboxides at oxidized Si(111) interfaces

Native oxidation of the Si(111)(1 x 1)H surface causes the appearance and disappearance of second-harmonic generation (SHG) resonances related to specific bonding configurations of Si atoms at the interface. Resonances at 3.52 eV two-photon energy observed in p-polarized SHG spectra are indicative of a Si suboxide configuration present in a partially oxidized Si surface bilayer. Similar resonances are observed in spectra of thermally oxidized Si(111) and point to Si2+ suboxide states at the buried interface.

Electric-field-induced second-harmonic generation in GaN devices

Electric-field-induced second-harmonic generation is used to detect electric fields in a GaN UV Schottky photodiode and in a GaN light-emitting diode. The second-harmonic signal is measured as a function of bias voltage and incident laser power. This technique is sensitive to small applied voltages and can be used to track electronic waveforms. The photocurrent generated by this technique is found to be less than 100 pA when the fundamental and second-harmonic frequencies are both below the device bandgap.

Structure determination of the Si3N4/Si(111)- (8 x 8) surface: a combined study of Kikuchi electron holography, scanning tunneling microscopy, and ab initio calculations

A comprehensive atomic model for the reconstructed surface of Si3N4 thin layer grown on Si(111) is presented. Kikuchi electron holography images clearly show the existence of adatoms on the Si3N4(0001)/Si(111)-(8x8) surface. Compared with the ab initio calculations, more than 30 symmetry-inequivalent atomic pairs in the outmost layers are successfully identified. Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) images show diamond-shaped unit cells and nine adatoms in each cell. High-resolution STM images reveal extra features and are in good agreement with the partial charge density distribution obtained from total-energy calculations.

Dislocation emission at the Silicon/Silicon nitride interface: A million atom molecular dynamics simulation on parallel computers

Mechanical behavior of the Si(111)/Si(3)N4(0001) interface is studied using million atom molecular dynamics simulations. At a critical value of applied strain parallel to the interface, a crack forms on the silicon nitride surface and moves toward the interface. The crack does not propagate into the silicon substrate; instead, dislocations are emitted when the crack reaches the interface. The dislocation loop propagates in the (1; 1;1) plane of the silicon substrate with a speed of 500 (+/-100) m/s. Time evolution of the dislocation emission and nature of defects is studied.

Time-dependent second-harmonic generation from the Si-SiO(2) interface induced by charge transfer

We have observed that the second-harmonic signal generated from oxidized Si(001) varies on a time scale of several seconds in experiments involving a fundamental beam of lambda = 770 nm, 110-fs pulses at 76 MHz. We suggest that the temporal behavior arises from absorption of weak (<100-fW average power) third-harmonic light generated in air or in the sample, inducing charge transfer across the Si-SiO(2) interface and trapping in the oxide layer. Detrapping has been determined to take several minutes.

Optical second-harmonic generation as a probe of electric-field-induced perturbation of centrosymmetric media

Polarization-selective optical second-harmonic generation (SHG) is applied to monitor nonuniform polarization distributions in centrosymmetric media modulated by an external dc electric field. Two different systems are investigated: first, optical SHG from a Au-Si(100) Schottky Barrier is shown to be a direct probe of the electric field polarity near such a metal-semiconductor interface. Second, a poled polymer exhibits a strong anisotropic SHG signal under normal incidence, indicating a nonuniform field enhancement at the edges of the poling electrode. The results demonstrate the sensitivity of SHG to small symmetry perturbations. Consequences for device applications are discussed.