Photoluminescence of ytterbium doped amorphous silicon and silicon carbide

The rare earth doped samples of a-Si:H and a-Si:C:H were produced by magnetron assisted silane decomposition (MASD) technique. Two mechanisms of energy transfer from host material to embedded rare earth ions are possible in amorphous silicon based alloys depending on the material composition and ion properties. The PL intensity of specific ions and the PL temperature dependence may be effectively varied by the appropriate choice of alloy composition.