Investigation of the Relationship Between the Composition and Photoluminescence Properties of Porous Silicon and Its Porosity

Porous silicon (por-Si) is a complex multiphase material, the composition and functional properties of which greatly depend on the features of its formation. In this work, samples of porous silicon with porosity indices from 5 to 80% are obtained by electrochemical etching and their photoluminescence properties are studied. The porosity of the samples is varied by changing the current density of electrochemical anodization during the etching process. The porosity index is calculated according to the X-ray reflectometry method. The aim of our work is to establish correlations between the porosity index, composition, intensity, and mechanism of porous-silicon photoluminescence. The surface composition is controlled by ultrasoft X‑ray spectroscopy and infrared spectroscopy. An increase in the degree of oxidation of the surface of the samples with an increase in the porosity index is shown. Two well-known mechanisms of porous silicon photoluminescence associated with the composition and morphology of the surface are found, and it is established at which porosity values they prevail. It is shown that an increase in the porosity index leads to an increase in the intensity of photoluminescence.