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arXiv · 1103.0609

Insulator-to-metal transition in sulfur-doped silicon

Mark T. Winkler·Daniel Recht·Meng-Ju Sher·Aurore J. Said·Eric Mazur·Michael J. Aziz
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Abstract

We observe an insulator-to-metal (I-M) transition in crystalline silicon doped with sulfur to non- equilibrium concentrations using ion implantation followed by pulsed laser melting and rapid resolidification. This I-M transition is due to a dopant known to produce only deep levels at equilibrium concentrations. Temperature-dependent conductivity and Hall effect measurements for temperatures T > 1.7 K both indicate that a transition from insulating to metallic conduction occurs at a sulfur concentration between 1.8 and 4.3 x 10^20 cm-3. Conduction in insulating samples is consistent with variable range hopping with a Coulomb gap. The capacity for deep states to effect metallic conduction by delocalization is the only known route to bulk intermediate band photovoltaics in silicon.

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Mark T. Winkler, Daniel Recht, Meng-Ju Sher, Aurore J. Said, Eric Mazur, Michael J. Aziz. 2011-03-03. Insulator-to-metal transition in sulfur-doped silicon. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.106.178701

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