EXPLORING TWO DIMENSIONAL INDIUM BASED SEMICONDUCTORS FOR NOVEL ELECTRONIC APPLICATIONS
Open Access
- Author:
- Gerace, Katy Sterling
- Area of Honors:
- Materials Science and Engineering
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Dr. Robert Allen Kimel, Thesis Honors Advisor
Joan Marie Redwing, Thesis Supervisor - Keywords:
- group-III nitrides
InN
2D materials
LED
powder vapor deposition
metal-organic chemical vapor deposition
direct bandgap semiconductor - Abstract:
- “In the beginning there was light” exemplifies how closely human lives are tied to light. Since the Nobel Prize was awarded in 2015 for doping GaN to produce white light, there is much interest surrounding the family of group-III nitrides (AlN, GaN, InN) for future optoelectronic applications, especially in the area of light emitting diodes (LEDs). These materials are direct bandgap semiconductors and when alloyed, span the entire visible spectrum making them viable options for efficient LEDs and photovoltaics. While much focus has been put on GaN and AlN, InN is still an unexplored nitride due to the difficulties associated with synthesis techniques and lattice mismatch. However, due to its narrow bandgap (0.7 eV) it is promising for THz communication devices and white LEDs. Here, an intercalation growth method was explored by growing In2Se3 thin films via metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) and physical vapor deposition (PVD) and exposing them to nitrogen at 500 ºC for 30 minutes to release Se and introduce N into the lattice. Both α-In2Se3 and β-In2Se3 monolayer films were characterized to analyze the crystal morphology and electrical properties. It was observed that the bandgap approached 1.3 eV as the number of In2Se3 layers decreased to below six in agreement with the quantum confinement effect. Additionally, deposition of monolayer β-In2Se3 via MOCVD at 400 ºC and 100 Torr for 30 minutes was confirmed with X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Due to the layered structure of In2Se3 and its direct bandgap, it exhibits properties that make it a viable material for conversion to InN for novel electronic applications.