Multiple morphologies and functionality of nanowires made from earth-abundant zinc phosphide

Semiconductors made of earth-abundant elements, such as zinc phosphide, have the potential to substitute less abundant, highly functional compound semiconductors such as InAs or InP. Compound semiconductors in the form of nanowires could revolutionise application areas such as energy harvesting and optoelectronics. Here we synthesise Zn3P2 nanowires tailored in four different morphologies, namely vertical, straight-titled, zigzag and crawling. The optical properties elucidated by cathodoluminescence spectroscopy indicate a shape and V/II ratio dependence. Band-edge, defects, or surface nanoclusters mediate the luminescence in different degrees. This work opens new avenues for the use of earth-abundant Zn3P2 nanowires in photovoltaic applications.

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Simon Robert Escobar Steinvall, Anna Fontcuberta i Morral, Jean-Baptiste Leran, Rajrupa Paul, Elias Zsolt Stutz, Nicolas Tappy, Reza Zamani, Mahdi Zamani
2019
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https://infoscience.epfl.ch/record/271950?ln=fr

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Heterotwin Zn3P2 superlattice nanowires: the role of indium insertion in the superlattice formation mechanism and their optical properties

Simon Robert Escobar Steinvall, Anna Fontcuberta i Morral, Lea Ghisalberti, Jean-Baptiste Leran, Rajrupa Paul, Elias Zsolt Stutz, Nicolas Tappy, Reza Zamani, Mahdi Zamani

Zinc phosphide (Zn3P2) nanowires constitute prospective building blocks for next generation solar cellsdue to the combination of suitable optoelectronic properties and an abundance of the constitutingelements in the Earth’s crust. The generation of periodic superstructures along the nanowire axis couldprovide an additional mechanism to tune their functional properties. Here we present the vapour–liquid–solid growth of zinc phosphide superlattices driven by periodic heterotwins. This uncommon planardefect involves the exchange of Zn by In at the twinning boundary. Wefind that the zigzag superlatticeformation is driven by reduction of the total surface energy of the liquid droplet. The chemical variationacross the heterotwin does not affect the homogeneity of the optical properties, as measured by catho-doluminescence. The basic understanding provided here brings new propsects on the use of II–V semi-conductors in nanowire technology

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The path towards 1 µm monocrystalline Zn3 P2 films on InP: substrate preparation, growth conditions and luminescence properties

Mirjana Dimitrievska, Simon Robert Escobar Steinvall, Anna Fontcuberta i Morral, Jean-Baptiste Leran, Rajrupa Paul, Elias Zsolt Stutz, Reza Zamani, Mahdi Zamani

Semiconductors made with earth abundant elements are promising as absorbers in future large-scale deployment of photovoltaic technology. This paper reports on the epitaxial synthesis of monocrystalline zinc phosphide (Zn_3 P_2) films with thicknesses up to 1 µm thickness on InP (100) substrates, as demonstrated by high resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. We explain the mechanisms by which thick monocrystalline layers can form. We correlate the crystalline quality with the optical properties by photoluminescence at 12 K. Polycrystalline and monocrystalline films exhibit dissimilar photoluminescence below the bandgap at 1.37 and 1.30 eV, respectively. Band edge luminescence at 1.5 eV is only detected for monocrystalline samples. This work establishes a reliable method for fabricating high-quality Zn_3 P_2 thin films that can be employed in next generation photovoltaic applications.

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