Ab initio calculation of energy levels for phosphorus donors in silicon

TL;DR

This paper uses density functional theory to calculate the energy levels of phosphorus donors in silicon from first principles, providing accurate and confirmed values for their s manifold energy states.

Contribution

First ab initio calculation of phosphorus donor energy levels in silicon confirming their s manifold energies with high accuracy.

Findings

Ground state energy: 41 meV, close to accepted 45.59 meV

Excited states 1s(T) and 1s(E): 32 and 31 meV

Wavefunction resembles atomic s orbital with 1.8 nm Bohr radius

Abstract

The s manifold energy levels for phosphorus donors in silicon are important input parameters for the design and modelling of electronic devices on the nanoscale. In this paper we calculate these energy levels from first principles using density functional theory. The wavefunction of the donor electron's ground state is found to have a form that is similar to an atomic s orbital, with an effective Bohr radius of 1.8 nm. The corresponding binding energy of this state is found to be 41 meV, which is in good agreement with the currently accepted value of 45.59 meV. We also calculate the energies of the excited 1s(T) and 1s(E) states, finding them to be 32 and 31 meV respectively. These results constitute the first ab initio confirmation of the s manifold energy levels for phosphorus donors in silicon.