Visible photoluminescence from Ge quantum dots

Spectroscopic analyses on stacked Ge quantum dots (QDs) on Si (1 0 0) substrates are presented. Strong and visible photoluminescence around 620 nm from stacked Ge QDs is observed. The luminescence is intense and clearly visible to the naked eye at both room temperature and low temperature. We have investigated the temperature dependence of the luminescence, as well as the composition of Ge dots via transmission electron microscopy and the Raman spectroscopy. Possible causes of the visible luminescence are also speculated in this report.