We have obtained cathodoluminescence (CL) emission from porous silicon (PSi) films by excitation with electrons with kinetic energies below 2KeV. We observed two types of CL emissions, a stable one in well oxidized samples and a non-stable one in hydrogen-passivated samples. The stable emission is characterized by a CL peak that is red shifted with respect to its photoluminescence (PL) peak. The other CL emission is the most promising in terms of it s application to field emission display technology. We were able to tune this CL emission by controlling the average size of the nanoparticles. This shows that the mechanism for this type of CL emission can be associated to the quantum confinement and surface chemistry effects that are known to exist in the porous silicon system. To further prove this point we were able to correlate this CL emission with its PL counterpart. We also found that the electron bombardment modifies the PSi films at the nanoscale level which is manifested by an increase in the density of nanoparticles and appears to be the reason behind the PL enhancement after electron bombardment. In addition, we present our preliminary results for the beginning of a prototype pixel for a field emission display using carbon nanotubes as the electron emitter component and a “PSi paste” as the display component.

• Legal notice:
  

  Copyright (c) Pielaszek Research, all rights reserved.
  The above materials, including auxiliary resources, are subject to Publisher's copyright and the Author(s) intellectual rights. Without limiting Author(s) rights under respective Copyright Transfer Agreement, no part of the above documents may be reproduced without the express written permission of Pielaszek Research, the Publisher. Express permission from the Author(s) is required to use the above materials for academic purposes, such as lectures or scientific presentations.
  In every case, proper references including Author(s) name(s) and URL of this webpage: https://science24.com/paper/11251 must be provided.

1. Growth and characterization of branched carbon nanostructures arrays in nano-patterned surfaces from porous silicon substrates