硅基高效光源业已成为硅光子单片集成最为关键需求。而在众多硅基光源的可能材料体系中，利用铒离子掺杂材料则由于其1540nm附近近红外发光，且易于与光通讯体系结合被广泛关注和研究。但铒离子的低固溶度、激发截面小、发光效率低、可为之提供能量传递的敏化剂随机分布等弱点限制了其成为硅基高效光源材料的可能。因而，如何从材料体系设计上克服以上的限制则是铒离子掺杂材料体系目前最为所需。本项目希望利用硅纳米晶和铒硅化合物结晶温度的不同，通过分步热处理，自组织生长形成硅酸铒包覆硅纳米晶的核壳结构。该核壳结构不仅通过壳层硅酸铒晶体获得更高浓度的铒含量，还使得提供能量传递的铒离子敏化剂（纳米晶硅）不再是随机分布，而是敏化剂与铒离子在空间位置上的相对应分布以及对应能量传递能级的匹配；从而有望获得高效硅基近红外发光材料。此外，硅酸铒包覆硅纳米晶核壳结构还有可能利用核心高折射率纳米晶硅的光场限制，实现近红外发光光增益。

Developing an efficient light source has been the key part of monolithic integration of silicon photonics. Of the many different approaches, using Er as an optical dopant has attracted particular attention because Er can be excited via carriers to obtain a light emitter at the wavelength of 1540nm that is both technologically important and transparent to Si, enabling integration with other Si-based photonic and electronic applications. However, theoretical and experimental evidences suggest that there was fundamentally limited due to the low solubility and quite low luminescence efficiency of Er in Si. Overcoming these limitations requires nanometer-scale design of the material composition and structure. Therefore, in this project, we develop an bottom-up self-assembled growth of a dense array of nanoparticle heterostructures that consist of a crystalline Si core surrounded by nanometer-thin shells of crystalline Erbium Silicate, forming an ideal Er-Si nanostructure that provides an unprecedented combination of high Er concentration, narrow emission peak, high luminescence efficiency, and the possibility of optical gain by using this core-shell structure. And the self-organized Erbium Silicate/nanocrystal Si core-shell nanostructure will show great potential as the material basis for developing an Si-based Infrared light source.