Hybrid artificial neural networks and analytical model for prediction of optical constants and bandgap energy of 3D nanonetwork silicon structures

Shreeniket Joshi; Amirkianoosh Kiani

doi:10.29026/oea.2021.210039

Article navigation > Opto-Electronic Advances > 2021 Vol. 4 > No. 10 > 210039

Next Article Previous Article

Joshi S, Kiani A. Hybrid artificial neural networks and analytical model for prediction of optical constants and bandgap energy of 3D nanonetwork silicon structures. Opto-Electron Adv 4, 210039 (2021). doi: 10.29026/oea.2021.210039

Citation:

Joshi S, Kiani A. Hybrid artificial neural networks and analytical model for prediction of optical constants and bandgap energy of 3D nanonetwork silicon structures. Opto-Electron Adv 4, 210039 (2021) . doi: 10.29026/oea.2021.210039

Original Article Open Access

Hybrid artificial neural networks and analytical model for prediction of optical constants and bandgap energy of 3D nanonetwork silicon structures

Silicon Hall: Micro/Nano Manufacturing Facility, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, Ontario Tech University, 2000 Simcoe St N, Oshawa, Ontario L1G 0C5, Canada

More Information

Corresponding author: A Kiani, E-mail: amirkianoosh.kiani@ontariotechu.ca

Received Date 19 March 2021

Accepted Date 04 May 2021

Available Online 25 October 2021

Published Date 25 October 2021

Abstract

Abstract

The aim of this study is to develop a reliable method to determine optical constants for 3D-nanonetwork Si thin films manufactured using a pulsed-laser ablation technique that can be applied to other materials synthesized by this technique. An analytical method was introduced to calculate optical constants from reflectance and transmittance spectra. Optical band gaps for this novel material and other important insights on the physical properties were derived from the optical constants. The existing optimization methods described in the literature were found to be complex and prone to errors while determining optical constants of opaque materials where only reflectance data is available. A supervised Deep Learning Algorithm was developed to accurately predict optical constants from the reflectance spectrum alone. The hybrid method introduced in this study was proved to be effective with an accuracy of 95%.
- 3D nanonetwork /
- nanostructures /
- optical properties /
- artificial neural network.

FullText(HTML)

References

[1]	Volinsky AA, Vella JB, Gerberich WW. Fracture toughness, adhesion and mechanical properties of low-K dielectric thin films measured by nanoindentation. Thin Solid Films 429, 201–210 (2003). doi: 10.1016/S0040-6090(03)00406-1 CrossRef Google Scholar
[2]	Dubey RS, Jhansirani K, Singh S. Investigation of solar cell performance using multilayer thin film structure (SiO₂/Si₃N₄) and grating. Results Phys 7, 77–81 (2017). doi: 10.1016/j.rinp.2016.11.065 CrossRef Google Scholar
[3]	Olivares J, Wegmann E, Capilla J, Iborra E, Clement M et al. Sputtered SiO₂ as low acoustic impedance material for Bragg mirror fabrication in BAW resonators. In 2009 IEEE International Frequency Control Symposium Joint with the 22nd European Frequency and Time forum 316–321 (IEEE, 2009); http://doi.org/10.1109/FREQ.2009.5168193. Google Scholar
[4]	Innocenzi P, Martucci A, Guglielmi M, Bearzotti A, Traversa E et al. Mesoporous silica thin films for alcohol sensors. J Eur Ceram Soc 21, 1985–1988 (2001). doi: 10.1016/S0955-2219(01)00156-X CrossRef Google Scholar
[5]	Kim ID, Jeon EK, Choi SH, Choi DK, Tuller HL. Electrospun SnO₂ nanofiber mats with thermo-compression step for gas sensing applications. J Electroceram 25, 159–167 (2010). doi: 10.1007/s10832-010-9607-6 CrossRef Google Scholar
[6]	Abed MM, Gaspari F, Kiani A. Optical properties of Si/SiO₂ Nano structured films induced by laser plasma ionization deposition. Opt Commun 462, 125297 (2020). doi: 10.1016/j.optcom.2020.125297 CrossRef Google Scholar
[7]	Mistrik J, Kasap S, Ruda HE, Koughia C, Singh J. Optical properties of electronic materials: fundamentals and characterization. In Springer Handbook of Electronic and Photonic Materials. Kasap S, Capper P, eds. Cham: Springer, 2017. Google Scholar
[8]	Poelman D, Smet PF. Methods for the determination of the optical constants of thin films from single transmission measurements: a critical review. J Phys D: Appl Phys 36, 1850–1857 (2003). doi: 10.1088/0022-3727/36/15/316 CrossRef Google Scholar
[9]	Manifacier JC, De Murcia M, Fillard JP, Vicario E. Optical and electrical properties of SnO₂ thin films in relation to their stoichiometric deviation and their crystalline structure. Thin Solid Films 41, 127–135 (1977). doi: 10.1016/0040-6090(77)90395-9 CrossRef Google Scholar
[10]	Swanepoel R. Determination of the thickness and optical constants of amorphous silicon. J Phys E: Sci Instrum 16, 1214–1222 (1983). doi: 10.1088/0022-3735/16/12/023 CrossRef Google Scholar
[11]	Ritter D, Weiser K. Suppression of interference fringes in absorption measurements on thin films. Opt Commun 57, 336–338 (1986). doi: 10.1016/0030-4018(86)90270-1 CrossRef Google Scholar
[12]	Hishikawa Y, Nakamura N, Tsuda S, Nakano S, Kishi Y et al. Interference-free determination of the optical absorption coefficient and the optical gap of amorphous silicon thin films. Jpn J Appl Phys 30, 1008–1014 (1991). doi: 10.1143/JJAP.30.1008 CrossRef Google Scholar
[13]	Mahanty S, Basak D, Merino JM, Leon M. Determination of interference-free optical constants of thin films. Mater Sci Eng: B 68, 72–75 (1999). doi: 10.1016/S0921-5107(99)00518-8 CrossRef Google Scholar
[14]	Ruan ZH, Yuan Y, Zhang XX, Shuai Y, Tan HP. Determination of optical properties and thickness of optical thin film using stochastic particle swarm optimization. Solar Energy 127, 147–158 (2016). doi: 10.1016/j.solener.2016.01.027 CrossRef Google Scholar
[15]	Liu YC, Hsieh JH, Tung SK. Extraction of optical constants of zinc oxide thin films by ellipsometry with various models. Thin Solid Films 510, 32–38 (2006). doi: 10.1016/j.tsf.2005.10.089 CrossRef Google Scholar
[16]	Synowicki RA. Spectroscopic ellipsometry characterization of indium tin oxide film microstructure and optical constants. Thin Solid Films 313–314, 394–397 (1998). doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0040-6090(97)00853-5 CrossRef Google Scholar
[17]	Dressel M, Gompf B, Faltermeier D, Tripathi AK, Pflaum TJ et al. Kramers-Kronig-consistent optical functions of anisotropic crystals: generalized spectroscopic ellipsometry on pentacene. Opt Exp 16, 19770–19778 (2008). doi: 10.1364/OE.16.019770 CrossRef Google Scholar
[18]	Rocha WRM, Pilling S. Determination of optical constants n and k of thin films from absorbance data using Kramers–Kronig relationship. Spectrochim Acta Part A Mol Biomol Spectrosc 123, 436–446 (2014). doi: 10.1016/j.saa.2013.12.075 CrossRef Google Scholar
[19]	Forouhi AR, Bloomer I. Optical dispersion relations for amorphous semiconductors and amorphous dielectrics. Phys Rev B 34, 7018–7026 (1986). doi: 10.1103/PhysRevB.34.7018 CrossRef Google Scholar
[20]	Nilsson PO. Determination of optical constants from intensity measurements at normal incidence. Appl Opt 7, 435–442 (1968). doi: 10.1364/AO.7.000435 CrossRef Google Scholar
[21]	Paulick TC. Inversion of normal-incidence (R, T) measurements to obtain n+ik for thin films. Appl Opt 25, 562–564 (1986). doi: 10.1364/AO.25.000562 CrossRef Google Scholar
[22]	Bringans RD. The determination of the optical constants of thin films from measurements of normal incidence reflectance and transmittance. J Phys D:Appl Phys 10, 1855–1861 (1977). doi: 10.1088/0022-3727/10/13/020 CrossRef Google Scholar
[23]	Denton RE, Campbell RD, Tomlin SG. The determination of the optical constants of thin films from measurements of reflectance and transmittance at normal incidence. J Phys D:Appl Phys 5, 852–863 (1972). doi: 10.1088/0022-3727/5/4/329 CrossRef Google Scholar
[24]	Chambouleyron I, Martínez JM, Moretti AC, Mulato M. Retrieval of optical constants and thickness of thin films from transmission spectra. Appl Opt 36, 8238–8247 (1997). doi: 10.1364/AO.36.008238 CrossRef Google Scholar
[25]	Chambouleyron I, Martínez JM, Moretti AC, Mulato M. Optical constants of thin films by means of a pointwise constrained optimization approach. Thin Solid Films 317, 133–136 (1998). doi: 10.1016/S0040-6090(97)00609-3 CrossRef Google Scholar
[26]	Mulato M, Chambouleyron I, Birgin EC, Martínez JM. Determination of thickness and optical constants of amorphous silicon films from transmittance data. Appl Phys Lett 77, 2133–2135 (2000). doi: 10.1063/1.1314299 CrossRef Google Scholar
[27]	Birgin EG, Chambouleyron I, Martínez JM. Estimation of the optical constants and the thickness of thin films using unconstrained optimization. J Comput Phys 151, 862–880 (1999). doi: 10.1006/jcph.1999.6224 CrossRef Google Scholar
[28]	Abed MM. Investigation of selective optical properties of Si/SiO₂ nanostructures generated by pulsed laser ablation as-deposited and post-treated. 2020. Google Scholar
[29]	Schafer RW. What is a savitzky-golay filter? [Lecture Notes]. IEEE Signal Proc Mag 28, 111–117 (2011). doi: 10.1109/MSP.2011.941097 CrossRef Google Scholar
[30]	Pankove JI. Optical Processes in Semiconductors (Courier Corporation, Dover, 1975). Google Scholar
[31]	Tauc J. Amorphous and Liquid Semiconductors (Springer Science & Business Media, Boston, 2012). Google Scholar
[32]	Vitanov P, Babeva T, Alexieva Z, Harizanova A, Nenova Z et al. Optical properties of (Al₂O₃)_x(TiO₂)_1−x films deposited by the sol–gel method. Vacuum 76, 219–222 (2004). doi: 10.1016/j.vacuum.2004.07.018 CrossRef Google Scholar
[33]	Laidani N, Bartali R, Gottardi G, Anderle M, Cheyssac P. Optical absorption parameters of amorphous carbon films from Forouhi–Bloomer and Tauc–Lorentz models: a comparative study. J Phys:Condens Matter 20, 015216 (2007). Google Scholar
[34]	Bakr NA, Funde AM, Waman VS, Kamble MM, Hawaldar RR et al. Determination of the optical parameters of a-Si: H thin films deposited by hot wire–chemical vapour deposition technique using transmission spectrum only. Pramana 76, 519–531 (2011). doi: 10.1007/s12043-011-0024-4 CrossRef Google Scholar
[35]	Shunk FA. Constitution of Binary Alloys Vol. S3 (McGraw-Hill, New York, 1969). Google Scholar
[36]	Hass G, Salzberg CD. Optical properties of silicon monoxide in the wavelength region from 0.24 to 14.0 microns. J Opt Soc Am 44, 181–187 (1954). doi: 10.1364/JOSA.44.000181 CrossRef Google Scholar
[37]	Heavens OS. Optical properties of thin films. Rep Prog Phys 23, 1–65 (1960). doi: 10.1143/PTP.23.1 CrossRef Google Scholar
[38]	Abass KH. Fe₂O₃ thin films prepared by spray pyrolysis technique and study the annealing on its optical properties. Int Lett Chem Phys Astron 45, 24–31 (2015). doi: 10.18052/www.scipress.com/ILCPA.45.24 CrossRef Google Scholar
[39]	Tomlin SG. Optical reflection and transmission formulae for thin films. J Phys D: Appl Phys 1, 1667–1671 (1968). doi: 10.1088/0022-3727/1/12/312 CrossRef Google Scholar
[40]	Palik ED. Handbook of Optical Constants of Solids (Academic Press, Orlando, 1985). Google Scholar
[41]	Torres-Costa V, Martín-Palma RJ, Martínez-Duart JM. Optical constants of porous silicon films and multilayers determined by genetic algorithms. J Appl Phys 96, 4197–4203 (2004). doi: 10.1063/1.1786672 CrossRef Google Scholar
[42]	Ma YS, Liu X, Gu PF, Tang GF. Estimation of optical constants of thin film by the use of artificial neural networks. Appl Opt 35, 5035–5039 (1996). doi: 10.1364/AO.35.005035 CrossRef Google Scholar
[43]	Tabet MF, McGahan WA. Use of artificial neural networks to predict thickness and optical constants of thin films from reflectance data. Thin Solid Films 370, 122–127 (2000). doi: 10.1016/S0040-6090(00)00952-4 CrossRef Google Scholar
[44]	Jakatdar NH, Niu XH, Spanos C J. Neural network approach to rapid thin film characterization. Proc SPIE 3275, 163–171 (1998). doi: 10.1117/12.304402 CrossRef Google Scholar
[45]	Ketkar N. Deep Learning with Python Vol. 1 (Springer, Berkeley, 2017). Google Scholar
[46]	Manaswi NK. Deep Learning with Applications Using Python (Springer, New York, 2018). Google Scholar
[47]	Kingma DP, Ba J. Adam: a method for stochastic optimization. arXiv: 1412.6980, 2014. Google Scholar
[48]	Rouard P, Meessen A. II Optical properties of thin metal films. Prog Opt 15, 77–137 (1977). Google Scholar
[49]	Freeman EC, Paul W. Optical constants of RF sputtered hydrogenated amorphous Si. Phys Rev B 20, 716–728 (1979). doi: 10.1103/PhysRevB.20.716 CrossRef Google Scholar
[50]	Tauc J, Grigorovici R, Vancu A. Optical properties and electronic structure of amorphous germanium. Phys Status Solidi 15, 627–637 (1966). doi: 10.1002/pssb.19660150224 CrossRef Google Scholar
[51]	Al-Kuhaili MF, Saleem M, Durrani SMA. Optical properties of iron oxide (α-Fe₂O₃) thin films deposited by the reactive evaporation of iron. J Alloys Compd 521, 178–182 (2012). doi: 10.1016/j.jallcom.2012.01.115 CrossRef Google Scholar
[52]	Cody GD, Brooks BG, Abeles B. Optical absorption above the optical gap of amorphous silicon hydride. Solar Energy Mater 8, 231–240 (1982). doi: 10.1016/0165-1633(82)90065-X CrossRef Google Scholar
[53]	Ventura SD, Birgin EG, Martínez JM, Chambouleyron I. Optimization techniques for the estimation of the thickness and the optical parameters of thin films using reflectance data. J Appl Phys 97, 043512 (2005). doi: 10.1063/1.1849431 CrossRef Google Scholar
[54]	Minnaert B, Veelaert P. Guidelines for the bandgap combinations and absorption windows for organic tandem and triple-junction solar cells. Materials 5, 1933–1953 (2012). doi: 10.3390/ma5101933 CrossRef Google Scholar