Impact of Annealing on the Emission Frequency of Pr 3+ Rare-Earth Ions in Si-Rich HfO 2 Films for Optoelectronic and Waveguide Applications
Year: 2026
Type: conference-paper
Abstract: The impact of heat treatment at 800-1100 °C on the photoluminescence (PL) spectra through the energy levels of the 4f shell in rare-earth Pr3+ions, as well as the emission wavelengths and frequencies of the emitted photons, was studied in HfO2films prepared by RF magnetron spattering and doped with Si and Pr elements. Crystallization and formation of the tetragonal HfO2phase at high temperatures stimulate the splitting of the 4f energy levels in Pr3+ions, along with the appearance of visible and IR emission bands in PL spectra associated with 4 f transitions in Pr3+ions. Using EDS and XPS techniques, it is shown that the film composition changes at annealing: the O content increases together with the generation of oxygen-related defects in HfO2films annealed at 800°-1000 °C. In contrast, the annealing at 1100°C decreases the O content in the films, that is accompanied by the generation of O vacancies. The excitation of Pr3+ion emission requires the transfer of excitation energy from intrinsic HfO2defects to the 4f energy levels of the Pr3+ions. Finally, the change of the type of intrinsic HfO2defects at annealing (800°-1100 °C) causes changes in the PL intensity, emission wavelengths, and emitted photon frequencies in the PL spectra of Pr3+ions. The presented results are important for the applications of$\text{Si}-\text{HfO}_{2}$: Pr films in optoelectronic devices and telecommunication technology.
Language: English
Subfield: Materials Chemistry
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7224944141