Abstract

SnTe films 0.8 μπ\ thick were grown onto glass, mica, and KBr crystals kept at 250°C in a vacuum of ~5 X 10^-6 Torr using a resistive heating technique. A pulsed laser (Nd:YAG) capable of producing 20-ns pulses of 1.06-pm wavelength with energy densities varying from 2 to 50 mj/cm² was employed. Films were irradiated with laser pulses of various intensities, and the number of pulses was varied up to 50. Transmission electron microscopic and x-ray diffraction studies were made on these films to understand the structural changes that occurred due to laser annealing. Direct current conductivity and Hall coefficient studies were made on all the films in the 77-500 K temperature range. These studies revealed that the average grain size increased from 0.1 to 0.48 μνη as a result of irradiation of the films with laser pulses of energy density of 30 mj/cm². The mobility of the films increased by a factor of 2 as a result of irradiation. Mobility temperature data have also been analyzed to estimate the contribution of defect scattering mobility to the conduction process. It is found that the value of μ₀ increases significant ly as a result of laser irradiation suggesting a considerable reduction of defects in the films. (Poster paper)

© 1986 Optical Society of America