An Investigation of Porous Silicon by Means of Positron Annihilation

Positron lifetime spectroscopy has been used to investigate a porous silicon film subjected to heat treatments up to 1170°C. Annealings between 300 and 500°C resulted in a 17% mass increase of the film due to oxygen uptake following the effusion of hydrogen. The positron data also indicate that vacancy clusters are formed in the silicon oxide layer or the silicon oxide—silicon interface surrounding the nanocrystallites as oxygen replaces the effusing hydrogen. The vacancy cluster concentration, which may have a bearing on the photoluminescent properties, increased by a factor of three with heating to 500°C and then decreased to one-third the original value at higher temperatures. Above 900°C vacancy migration and clustering occurred, accompanied by visible deterioration of the film.