Energy transfer in Er doped silica films containing Si nanocrystals formed by MEVVA ion implantation

Er-doped SiO₂ thin films containing Si nanocrystals (nc-si) were prepared by a metal vapor vacuum arc (MEVVA) ion source and their photoluminescence (PL) properties were studied. 1.54 μm light emission from the samples could be assigned to the Er³⁺ optical transmission from the first excited state (⁴I₁₃2/) to the ground state (⁴I₁₅2/). Correlation between the intensity of the 1.54 μm luminescence peaks was studied as functions of nc-Si concentration and temperature, respectively. The present results clearly demonstrate that the excitation of Er³⁺ occurs through the recombination of photogenerated carriers outside the nc-Si or at the interface of the nc-Si and SiO₂.