Photoluminescence and charge storage characteristics of silica nanocrystals: The role of stress-induced interface defects

Abstract SiO 2 nanocrystals embedded in Lu 2 O 3 thin film were fabricated using pulsed-laser deposition method. Two dimensional finite element calculations clearly reveal that SiO 2 nanocrystals certainly experienced great compressive stress in Lu 2 O 3 thin film. This may lead to a great deal of stress-induced defects at the interface of SiO 2 nanocrystals embedded in Lu 2 O 3 thin film and thus induced the observed photoluminescence peak and charge storage properties. The findings presented here indicate that the matrix environment of the nanocrystals plays a significant role in determining their electrical and optical properties.