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Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference: GR/L43411/01
Title: OPTICAL AND STRUCTURAL PROPERTIES OF NANOSCALE SILICON MATERIALS FABRICATED WITH SIZE-SELECTED CLUSTER BEAMS
Principal Investigator: Palmer, Professor RE
Other Investigators:
Aindow, Professor M Kolasinski, Dr W
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Project Partners:
Department: School of Physics and Astronomy
Organisation: University of Birmingham
Scheme: Standard Research (Pre-FEC)
Starts: 01 October 1997 Ends: 31 March 2001 Value (£): 279,664
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:
Materials Characterisation
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:
No relevance to Underpinning Sectors
Related Grants:
Panel History:  
Summary on Grant Application Form
The discovery of strong visible luminescence from porous silicon has led to the study of the luminescence properties of silicon clusters. This has generated tremendous interest because of the potential applications for Si-based optoelectronics in Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) and display technologies. To develop intelligently new photonic materials, we must understand the physical mechanisms of light emission and, more generally, the optical properties of nanostructured materials. We will investigate the optical properties of size-selected, isolated clusters of Si deposited on a substrate, as well as thin films made with size-selected cluster beams. We will use X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy (HREELS), laser photoluminescence (time resolved and cw PL), X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy (SEM, HREM and TEM) to probe these systems. The use of a size-selected cluster beam in combination with a controllable deposition environment will allow us to vary the size of the clusters independently from their surface chemical composition (which we can control) affect the mechanism of optical emission from nanoscale clusters. Moreover, these studies will attempt to fabricate new nanophase materials with tailored optical properties.
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Organisation Website: http://www.bham.ac.uk