Microstructure and blue photoluminescence enhancement of silicon nanoporous pillar array embedded in ferroelectric barium strontium titanate

A silicon nanoporous pillar array (Si-NPA) with micrometer/nanometer hierarchical structure was fabricated by hydrothermal etching, followed by spin-coating barium strontium titanate (BST) on Si-NPA substrate. The photoluminescence (PL) spectra of the Si-NPA and BST/Si-NPA thin film were investigated. The emission band of freshly prepared Si-NPA located at ∼630 nm, and a blueshift at ∼425 nm as well as degradation in intensity after annealing at 600 °C for 1 h was observed, which might be explained by a quantum confinement effect model. BST ferroelectric material provided a static-electric field and induced the excited carriers in Si-NPA to migrate toward the opposite direction and recombine in an interfacial oxide layer. Therefore, BST enhanced blue emission of Si-NPA as well as passivated Si-NPA.