Efficient photon capture on germanium surfaces using industrially feasible nanostructure formation

TL;DR

This paper presents a controlled, industrially feasible one-step nanostructure fabrication method on germanium surfaces via metal assisted chemical etching, significantly reducing surface reflectance across a broad spectrum.

Contribution

It introduces a novel process for creating nanoscale structures on Ge surfaces with precise control, enabling low-reflectance optical properties suitable for photonics applications.

Findings

Achieved less than 10% surface reflectance from 400 nm to 1600 nm.

Developed a simple, one-step MACE process for germanium nanostructuring.

Demonstrated industrial viability and applicability to thin Ge layers.

Abstract

Nanostructured surfaces are known to provide excellent optical properties for various photonics devices. Fabrication of such nanoscale structures to germanium (Ge) surfaces by metal assisted chemical etching (MACE) is, however, challenging as Ge surface is highly reactive resulting often in micron-level rather than nanoscale structures. Here we show that by properly controlling the process, it is possible to confine the chemical reaction only to the vicinity of the metal nanoparticles and obtain nanostructures also in Ge. Furthermore, it is shown that controlling the density of the nanoparticles, concentration of oxidizing and dissolving agents as well as the etching time plays a crucial role in successful nanostructure formation. We also discuss the impact of high mobility of charge carriers on the chemical reactions taking place on Ge surfaces. As a result we propose a simple one-step MACE process that results in nanoscale structures with less than 10% surface reflectance in the wavelength region between 400 nm and 1600 nm. The method consumes only a small amount of Ge and is thus industrially viable and also applicable to thin Ge layers.