Film Thickness controlled photoluminescence Emission in ZnO:Si Nano-composites

TL;DR

This study investigates how film thickness influences the photoluminescence spectra of ZnO:Si nanocomposite films, revealing the roles of nanoparticle size, density, and interface effects in emission properties.

Contribution

It demonstrates the impact of film thickness on ZnO cluster size, density, and interface contributions to photoluminescence in ZnO:Si nanocomposites.

Findings

PL peaks at 370, 410, 470, 520 nm identified

Interface effects contribute to 410 and 470 nm peaks

ZnO grain size and density affect PL spectra

Abstract

As grown ZnO:Si nanocomposite films fabricated by thermal evaporation showed broad photoluiminescence (PL) spectra due to merging of four prominent peaks viz 370, 410, 470 and 520 nm. Investigations revealed the role of interface in contributing to the two blue peaks at 410 and 470 nm. While the 470 nm is found to vary with ZnO grain size and their density, the 410 nm peak is attributed to the volume of shell surrounding ZnO nanoparticles. This study shows the contribution of ZnO cluster size and their density, as influenced by film thickness, in the PL spectra of the samples.