Optical characterization of epitaxial single crystal CdTe thin films on Al2O3 (0001) substrates

The optoelectronic properties of single crystal CdTe thin films were investigated by photoluminescence spectroscopy, photoreflectance spectroscopy and variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry. The room temperature bandgap was measured to be 1.51 eV and was consistent between spectroscopic measurements and previously reported values. Breadth of bandgap emission was consistent with high quality material. Low temperature photoluminescence spectra indicated a dominant emission consistent with bound excitons. Emissions corresponding to self-compensation defects, doping and contaminants were not found. Variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements over the near-UV to infrared range demonstrated sharp resonance peaks. All spectroscopic measurements indicate high quality thin film material of comparable or better quality than bulk CdTe.