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Distinction between amorphous and crystalline silicon by means of electron energy-loss spectroscopy

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Abstract

A distinction between amorphous and crystalline silicon by means of the silicon \(\hbox {L}_{23}\)-edges acquired by electron energy-loss spectroscopy is presented. Both the fine structures of the \(\hbox {L}_{23}\)-edges and their threshold energies have been determined and are compared. Since the zero loss peak and the adjacent core loss edges could not be acquired simultaneously due to their strong difference in intensity, MgO was used as an external reference for the exact and absolute determination of the threshold energies. As a result, the threshold energies of amorphous silicon and crystalline silicon are identical, while the fine structures of the \(\hbox {L}_{23}\)-edges vary significantly. Calculations of the \(\hbox {L}_{23}\)-edges of crystalline silicon are presented in order to provide an explanation for the differences in their fine structures.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge financial support by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research within the joint research project SINOVA (Project No. 03SF0352).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Interdisziplinäres Zentrum für Materialwissenschaften, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, 06099, Halle, Germany

    Martin Schade, Bodo Fuhrmann, Frank Heyroth & Hartmut S. Leipner

  2. Institut für Physik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Von-Seckendorff-Platz 1, 06120, Halle, Germany

    Angelika Chassé

  3. Institut für Silizium-Photovoltaik, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, Kekuléstrasse 5, 12489, Berlin, Germany

    Maurizio Roczen

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  1. Martin Schade
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  2. Bodo Fuhrmann
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  5. Maurizio Roczen
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  6. Hartmut S. Leipner
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Correspondence to Martin Schade.

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Schade, M., Fuhrmann, B., Chassé, A. et al. Distinction between amorphous and crystalline silicon by means of electron energy-loss spectroscopy. Appl. Phys. A 120, 393–399 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-015-9201-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-015-9201-5

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