Title: Nano-silver microcavity enhanced UV GaN light emitter

Authors: N.M. Ahmed, Zaliman Sauli, Uda Hashim, Zul Azhar Zahid Jamal

Addresses: Dept. of Microelectronic Engineering, University Malaysia Perlis, Jejawi Block A, Arau, 02600, Malaysia. ' Dept. of Microelectronic Engineering, University Malaysia Perlis, Jejawi Block A, Arau, 02600, Malaysia. ' Dept. of Microelectronic Engineering, University Malaysia Perlis, Jejawi Block A, Arau, 02600, Malaysia. ' Dept. of Microelectronic Engineering, University Malaysia Perlis, Jejawi Block A, Arau, 02600, Malaysia

Abstract: We report results of measurements that help to clarify the role of silver in the reflection of UV emission light from GaN. A GaN as an active layer was sandwiched between two silver metal reflectors. GaN layer on sapphire showed a photoluminescence (PL) peak around 364 nm and its full width half maximum was about 6.7 nm. Two types of microcavity, were fabricated: half-cavity GaN/sapphire/silver and full-cavity silver/GaN/sapphire/silver. Photoluminescence measurements showed a two-fold intensity enhancement in half-cavity back mirror. In the full cavity samples, the amplitude of the photoluminescence is enhanced ten times when we used 50 nm silver as a front mirror. A tremendous more than 16-fold enhancement is obtained when silver mirror of 25 nm was used as a front mirror. The increase in the photoluminescence intensity is explained in terms of competition between increasing absorption in the cavity, silver surface plasmon coupling and increasing optical field-enhancement due to resonator.

Keywords: GaN; gallium nitride; photoluminescence; nanosilver; plasmon frequency; microcavities; ultraviolet; silver metal reflectors; nanomanufacturing; nanotechnology.

DOI: 10.1504/IJNM.2009.028107

International Journal of Nanomanufacturing, 2009 Vol.4 No.1/2/3/4, pp.26 - 33

Published online: 07 Sep 2009 *

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