SiliconPub Date : 2025-05-23DOI: 10.1007/s12633-025-03313-8
Sadaf Noreen, Sajjad H. Sumrra, Abrar U. Hassan, Maria Afzaal, Ashraf Y. Elnaggar, Islam H. El Azab, Mohamed H. H. Mahmoud
{"title":"A DFT and Molecular Correlational Analysis on Newly Designed Silicon-Carbide Quantum Dots with Extended Acceptors for their Photovoltaic Performance","authors":"Sadaf Noreen, Sajjad H. Sumrra, Abrar U. Hassan, Maria Afzaal, Ashraf Y. Elnaggar, Islam H. El Azab, Mohamed H. H. Mahmoud","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03313-8","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03313-8","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>For their improved photovoltaic (PV) performance, this study addresses the electronic and structural basis of silicon carbide quantum dots (SQs) structures. For this, we employ Density Functional Theory (DFT) to develop and optimize donor-π-acceptor based Si<sub>8</sub>C<sub>8</sub>H<sub>8</sub> derived SQs. Using RDKit of Python programming language, their molecular descriptors are calculated. Their Topological Polar Surface Area (TPSA) emerges to be the most influential parameter by their correlational analysis, having a substantial correlation with their maximum absorption (λ<sub>max</sub>). The Random Forest Regression model predicts their open circuit voltage (V<sub>oc</sub>) with its R-Squared (R<sup>2</sup>) of 0.82. Additionally, their λ<sub>max</sub> as descriptor (Max_Abs) displays its strong correlations with both Short-Circuit Current Density (J<sub>sc</sub>, R = 0.71) and Light Harvesting Efficiency (LHE, R = 0.83) which suggests that a longer λ<sub>max</sub> can promote higher PV efficiency. There are also moderate correlations which existed for open circuit voltage (V<sub>oc</sub>, R = 0.56) and Max_Abs with its LogP and V<sub>oc</sub> (R = 0.63). These results guide the design of high-performance SQ-based PV materials by offering insightful information on structure–property relationships.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 10","pages":"2249 - 2261"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145144672","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SiliconPub Date : 2025-05-20DOI: 10.1007/s12633-025-03337-0
Erum Rashid, Syed Ayyaz Javed, Zahoor Hussain, Shahla Rashid, Muhammad Tauseef Jaffar, Muhammad Ahmed, Atif Bilal Nasir, Hafiz Muhammad Tayyab Khan, Waleed A. A. Alsakkaf, Hayssam M. Ali
{"title":"Chelated Silicon Mitigated the Salinity-induced Drastic Effects by Regulating the Antioxidant Activities and Biochemical Attributes of Two Different Pea Genotypes","authors":"Erum Rashid, Syed Ayyaz Javed, Zahoor Hussain, Shahla Rashid, Muhammad Tauseef Jaffar, Muhammad Ahmed, Atif Bilal Nasir, Hafiz Muhammad Tayyab Khan, Waleed A. A. Alsakkaf, Hayssam M. Ali","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03337-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03337-0","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Purpose</h3><p>Salinity stress has become a major threat to crop growth and food security for the increased population of the globe. Thus, silicon (Si) is a non-essential beneficial element for plants but has multifaceted functions regarding tolerance against abiotic stresses.</p><h3>Methods</h3><p>Therefore, a pot experiment was performed to examine the comparative impacts of organic and inorganic sources of Si on the vegetative and physiological behavior of two genotypes of pea plants under non-saline and saline (5 dSm<sup>−1</sup>) conditions. Two pea genotypes [salt-sensitive (Ambasidar) and salt-tolerant (Samerena zard)] were used in the study, and three treatments i) chelated-Si (EDTA-Si) @ 0.5% ii) inorganic-Si (K<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>Si) @ 0.5% and iii) without-Si (control) were devised under three factorial completely randomized design.</p><h3>Results</h3><p>Data reflected the positive response of both Si sources but EDTA-Si proved more beneficial in aggravating the growth & gas exchange attributes and activity of antioxidant enzymes significantly in salt-sensitive and salt-tolerant pea genotypes under normal and saline growing conditions. Moreover, the increase in ionic contents (K, Ca, Mg, and P) was also observed except for Na<sup>+</sup>, Cl<sup>−</sup> and Na: K ratio in pea plants when treated with EDTA-Si.</p><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>However, both Si sources improved the measuring traits of both salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive pea genotypes but EDTA-Si revealed a significant improvement in measured attributes of the salt-tolerant genotype as compared to the salt-sensitive. Thus, EDTA-Si ameliorated the negative effects of salinity by enhancing the plant's defense mechanisms, mediated through increased activity of antioxidant enzymes and greater uptake of nutrient ions. This improvement was attributed to enhanced vegetative growth, particularly root growth and proliferation, compared to plants treated with the inorganic form of Si.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 9","pages":"2195 - 2208"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145144386","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SiliconPub Date : 2025-05-20DOI: 10.1007/s12633-025-03343-2
Arindam Biswas, Hayat Ullah, Pedro García‐Caparrós, Rujira Tisarum, Suriyan Cha-um, Avishek Datta
{"title":"Synergistic Effect of Soil Amendment with Silicon and Foliar Application of Gibberellic Acid on Growth, Herbage Yield, and Physio-Biochemical Responses of Drought-Affected Ocimum basilicum L.","authors":"Arindam Biswas, Hayat Ullah, Pedro García‐Caparrós, Rujira Tisarum, Suriyan Cha-um, Avishek Datta","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03343-2","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03343-2","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Sweet basil (<i>Ocimum basilicum</i> L.) is an herbaceous plant widely renowned for its medicinal and aromatic properties. It is susceptible to drought stress, which markedly reduces its vegetative growth, essential oil yield, along with alterations in secondary metabolites. Although the individual soil application of silicon (Si) and foliar application of gibberellic acid (GA<sub>3</sub>) have been shown to enhance growth, herbage yield, and physiological responses of sweet basil under drought stress, it is hypothesized that their combined or synergistic effect, which remains largely unexplored, would be even more effective in mitigating drought stress. The objective of this experiment was to discern the potential role of soil application of Si and foliar application of GA<sub>3</sub>, both individually and in combination, in alleviating the adverse consequences of water scarcity on sweet basil. The current polyhouse study was conducted under a completely randomized design with three factors, such as soil application of three Si doses (0 [Si<sub>0</sub>], 30 [Si<sub>30</sub>], and 60 [Si<sub>60</sub>] kg ha<sup>–1</sup>) applied in the form of monosilicic acid with a 20% Si content, foliar application of three GA<sub>3</sub> doses (0 [GA<sub>3</sub>-0], 50 [GA<sub>3</sub>-50], and 100 [GA<sub>3</sub>-100] mg L<sup>–1</sup>), and three soil water regimes (field capacity [FC] 50%: FC<sub>50</sub>, 75%: FC<sub>75</sub>, and 100%: FC<sub>100</sub>). Shoot length, dry weight of shoot, leaf number, herbage yield, water productivity, solute potential (Ψ<sub>s</sub>), and net photosynthetic rate (P<sub>n</sub>) were declined by 27–33%, 53–58%, 41–45%, 67–73%, 52–68%, –0.26 to –0.49 MPa, and 39–58%, respectively, at FC<sub>50</sub> in comparison to FC<sub>100</sub> across Si and GA<sub>3</sub> doses. The combined soil supply of Si<sub>30</sub> and foliar application of GA<sub>3</sub>-50 was the most effective treatment, leading to a 31% increase in leaf area, a 91% rise in herbage yield, an 86% enhancement in water productivity, a 149% increase in P<sub>n</sub>, a 96% rise in total phenol concentration, and a 186% boost in total flavonoid concentration at FC<sub>50</sub> as compared to those plants raised under similar soil moisture level without Si and GA<sub>3</sub> supplementation. Moreover, the performance of some parameters of the plants treated with the same combination at FC<sub>75</sub> was better than the control plants grown at optimal conditions of FC<sub>100</sub>, underlining the drought-alleviating potential of Si and GA<sub>3</sub> in the cultivation of sweet basil. Exogenous application of Si<sub>30</sub> as a soil supplement and GA<sub>3</sub>-50 as a foliar spray appears to be a promising technique for enhancing drought resilience of sweet basil plants and optimizing its growth potential in both well-irrigated and water-stressed conditions.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 9","pages":"2179 - 2193"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145144388","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SiliconPub Date : 2025-05-20DOI: 10.1007/s12633-025-03333-4
Hossam S. El-Beltagi, Essam Abdelaziz El-Waraky, Mohammed I. Al-Daej, Kholoud Ahmed El-Naqma, Adel A. Rezk, Medhat G. Zoghdan, Mohamed M. El-Mogy, Mohamed Fathi El-Nady, Ahmed Mahmoud Ismail, Metwaly Mahfouz Salem Metwaly
{"title":"Coupling effects of silicon and calcium foliar application and potassium soil fertilization on growth and yield production of cotton plants under drought stress conditions","authors":"Hossam S. El-Beltagi, Essam Abdelaziz El-Waraky, Mohammed I. Al-Daej, Kholoud Ahmed El-Naqma, Adel A. Rezk, Medhat G. Zoghdan, Mohamed M. El-Mogy, Mohamed Fathi El-Nady, Ahmed Mahmoud Ismail, Metwaly Mahfouz Salem Metwaly","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03333-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03333-4","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Drought significantly affects cotton production, decreasing both yield and fiber quality. This study investigated how foliar applications of calcium (Ca) or silicon (Si), along with varying potassium (K) levels in the soil, can improve drought tolerance in cotton. The foliar treatments involved calcium nitrate at 4 g/L or silicon oxide at 1 ml/L, combined with 106.6 and 160 kg K<sub>2</sub>SO4 ha⁻<sup>1</sup> as soil fertilizer. These treatments were compared to potassium-only applications, with irrigation intervals of 30 days during the 2021 and 2022 growing seasons. The 160 kg K<sub>2</sub>SO4 ha⁻<sup>1</sup> treatment notably improved plant growth, including increased plant height, dry weight, leaf area, and the number of fruiting branches, compared to the 106.6 kg K<sub>2</sub>SO4treatment. It also enhanced chlorophyll content, antioxidant enzyme activity, leaf phenol and proline levels, and relative water content (RWC). Additionally, the 160 kg K<sub>2</sub>SO4 ha⁻<sup>1</sup> treatment improved yield-related traits, such as the number of open bolls, lint percentage, seed index, and fiber quality, including fiber length, strength, and micronaire. The number of open bolls, lint percentage, and seed index increased by 2.38%, 1.71%, and 1.68% in the first season, and by 4.29%, 1.57%, and 1.38% in the second season, respectively. The combination of Ca or Si foliar applications with K treatments further enhanced plant growth, chlorophyll, antioxidant activity, RWC, seed index, boll weight, and fiber quality. These treatments also raised nutrient levels of N, P, K, Ca, and Si compared to the control. Overall, combining Ca or Si sprays with 160 kg K<sub>2</sub>SO4 effectively mitigated drought stress and improved cotton growth and productivity.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 10","pages":"2225 - 2245"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145144387","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SiliconPub Date : 2025-05-19DOI: 10.1007/s12633-025-03338-z
Lan Thi Mai, Dung Tri Pham, Van Hong Nguyen
{"title":"Structure of Liquid SiO2 and Two-phase Model: Insight From Data Mining Techniques","authors":"Lan Thi Mai, Dung Tri Pham, Van Hong Nguyen","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03338-z","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03338-z","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In this study, data mining techniques and Molecular Dynamics simulations were used to investigate the two-phase model of liquid SiO<sub>2</sub>. Analysis of the Si–Si distance distribution revealed two distinct phases: a high-density (HD) phase and a low-density (LD) phase. The DBSCAN clustering algorithm identified spatial heterogeneities in structure and density. Further analysis showed significant differences in the intermediate-range order between the phases, while local structural investigations revealed that the HD phase forms grain-like clusters, similar to polycrystalline materials. These findings provide new insights into the structural complexity of silica, enhancing our understanding of SiO<sub>2</sub> at the atomic scale and aiding the design of silica-based materials.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 9","pages":"2171 - 2178"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145144189","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SiliconPub Date : 2025-05-17DOI: 10.1007/s12633-025-03344-1
Ali S. Hasan, Mohammed H. Abbas, Ahmed Hashim, Ahmed Ehsan Jassem, Mohammed H. Al-maamori, Hussein. M. Khalid, Zinah S. Hasan, Zahraa S. Alameer
{"title":"Ameliorating and Tuning the Microstructure, Electronic and Optical Features of PMMA-SiC-ZnO Futuristic Nanostructures for Tailored Nanoelectronics Applications","authors":"Ali S. Hasan, Mohammed H. Abbas, Ahmed Hashim, Ahmed Ehsan Jassem, Mohammed H. Al-maamori, Hussein. M. Khalid, Zinah S. Hasan, Zahraa S. Alameer","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03344-1","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03344-1","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The current work aims to fabricate of futuristic nanocomposites films based on poly-methyl methacrylate (PMMA) filled with silicon carbide (SiC) and zinc oxide(ZnO) nanostructures to apply in many advanced optical fields. The optical, morphological, microstructure, and electronic features of (PMMA-SiC-ZnO) nanocomposites films are examined. The results demonstrated that the PMMA absorption increases of 81.1% at λ = 360 nm when the SiC-ZnO NPs content increased to 2.8 wt.%. The transmittance decreased of 23.7% at λ = 360 nm, these results making the (PMMA-SiC-ZnO) films as promising nanomaterials for optical and nanoelectronics fields. The energy gap reduced from 3.5 eV to 3.03 eV with growing SiC-ZnO NPs content to 2.8 wt.%. The other optical parameters were improved with rising of SiC-ZnO NPs content. The results of electronic properties showed to enhance the electronic factors of PMMA by adding the SiC-ZnO NPs. The obtained results confirmed that the nanocomposites films of (PMMA-SiC-ZnO) are promising nanosystem for development of nanoelectronics and optical fields.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 9","pages":"2155 - 2169"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145143866","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SiliconPub Date : 2025-05-14DOI: 10.1007/s12633-025-03332-5
Mahboob ul Haque, P. Vimala
{"title":"An Optimized Hetero-gate Bandgap-Engineered SOI PNPN TFET with Hetero-dielectric BOX for Near-Complete Suppression of Ambipolar Current","authors":"Mahboob ul Haque, P. Vimala","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03332-5","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03332-5","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This paper presents a planar SOI Tunnel FET that integrates a source-side pocket, hetero-gate, hetero-dielectric BOX along with bandgap engineering. These design enhancements, implemented through 2D simulations, result in a significantly high ON current, an improved ON-to-OFF current ratio, and nearly complete suppression of ambipolar current. An optimum pocket is introduced near the source leading to full depletion of the pocket. A comprehensive analysis of partial depletion and full depletion conditions along with a detailed step by step flow for fabrication of the proposed device is presented. As part of bandgap engineering, SiGe is utilized as the source material. Additionally, the hetero-gate structure enhances the tunneling generation rate between the source and the channel, achieving an ON-current of 2 × 10<sup>–4</sup> A/µm and an OFF current of 3.37 × 10<sup>–15</sup> A/µm. The incorporation of a hetero-dielectric buried oxide (HDB) effectively suppresses ambipolar conduction up to a gate voltage of -1.1V. These design optimizations collectively yield a better ON-to-OFF current ratio of 6 × 10<sup>1</sup>⁰ and nearly eliminate OFF current. Furthermore, the device achieves a point subthreshold swing of approximately 20 mV/dec, making it a strong candidate for low-power and energy-efficient applications.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 9","pages":"2143 - 2153"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145143376","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SiliconPub Date : 2025-05-08DOI: 10.1007/s12633-025-03329-0
Ramazan Lok
{"title":"The Effects of Temperature and Frequency on the Electrical and Dielectric Properties of Al2O3 Structure","authors":"Ramazan Lok","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03329-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03329-0","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study aims to investigate the behavior of aluminium oxide MOS capacitors under both high and low frequencies and to evaluate the changes in their electrical and dielectric properties due to temperature variations. The MOS capacitors were fabricated using a sputtering technique. To analyze the frequency effects, capacitance–voltage (<i>C-V</i>) and conductance-voltage (<i>G-V</i>) measurements were conducted at both high and low frequencies. Additionally, to study the influence of temperature, <i>C-V</i> and <i>G-V</i> measurements were carried out across a temperature range of 293 K to 393 K. From the experimental data, critical device parameters such as the Fermi energy level (<i>E</i><sub><i>F</i></sub>), barrier height (<i>Φ</i><sub><i>B</i></sub>), maximum electric field (<i>Eₘ</i>), and dielectric properties (<i>ε′, ε″,</i> and <i>tan δ</i>) were calculated. The deviations observed in the <i>C-V</i> curves were attributed to frequency-dependent interface states and boundary traps, highlighting the complex dynamics of charge trapping and surface states. Interestingly, both <i>E</i><sub><i>F</i></sub> and <i>Φ</i><sub><i>B</i></sub> were found to increase with temperature, a phenomenon that diverges from typical literature expectations and could be linked to the presence of interface defects. Moreover, at high frequencies, an increase in the dielectric loss factor (<i>tan δ</i>) and dielectric constants (<i>ε′ and ε′′</i>) was observed, indicating enhanced charge carrier mobility at elevated temperatures. This results in improved electrical conductivity and a reduction in resistance, which aligns with findings from previous studies. In summary, the strong sensitivity of aluminium oxide MOS capacitors to changes in temperature and frequency, along with significant variations in their dielectric properties, underscores their potential for use in temperature sensors, particularly within lower temperature ranges.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 9","pages":"2131 - 2142"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145142804","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Novel and Optimal Simulation Approach for Non-Uniform Boron Emitter of Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells","authors":"Zhiping Huang, Dongjin Liao, Wenhao Li, Yudi Wang, Yang Ding, Deyuan Wei, Ying Xu","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03330-7","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03330-7","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study introduces an innovative simulation methodology for analyzing the performance of crystalline silicon solar cells with non-uniform emitter architectures. By leveraging the ATHENA and ATLAS platforms in the Silvaco TCAD software suite, both doping process models and device models for non-uniform emitters were developed. The simulation results indicate that non-uniform emitters primarily arise from the uneven distribution of boron atoms in borosilicate glass (BSG) layer. Device simulation reveals that non-uniform emitters exhibit significant surface recombination losses and lateral transport losses during carrier transport, leading to reductions in both open-circuit voltage (V<sub>oc</sub>) and short-circuit current (J<sub>sc</sub>). The observed correlation between larger deviations in sheet resistance and greater performance degradation aligns closely with experimental trends. This method offers a more precise tool for simulating the performance of industrially manufactured solar cells and has the potential to shorten development cycles for silicon solar cell diffusion processes.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 9","pages":"2121 - 2130"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145142803","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SiliconPub Date : 2025-05-07DOI: 10.1007/s12633-025-03322-7
Mina Labib, Michael Gad, Yasser M. Sabry, Diaa Khalil
{"title":"Extended Wavelength Silicon-on-Silica Photonics Platform: Design Case Study for Gas Sensing in the Mid-infrared Range","authors":"Mina Labib, Michael Gad, Yasser M. Sabry, Diaa Khalil","doi":"10.1007/s12633-025-03322-7","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12633-025-03322-7","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>A complete design of a silicon-on-silica integrated CO<sub>2</sub> optical sensor is proposed. The detection relies on the strong optical absorption of the gas at wavelength of 4.28 um. Typically, silica is not employed in such applications since it exhibits strong optical losses in the mid-infrared range. Alternative materials with low optical losses, such as sapphire and silicon nitride, are usually employed instead. In the proposed design, and unlike formerly proposed sensors, silica is utilized as the buried layer to be compatible with the cheap and mature CMOS technology. The proposed design circumvents the silica absorption losses by optimizing the waveguide confinement factor. The sensor features a detection sensitivity of 6.4 ppm and a device length of 4.68 cm. The design includes a grating coupler offering 3.5 dB coupling efficiency with an incident Gaussian beam from an InF<sub>3</sub> single mode fiber. The study shows both analytical and numerical calculations with good agreement. The presented work pushes the utilization of the mature CMOS technology deeper into mid-infrared applications.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":776,"journal":{"name":"Silicon","volume":"17 9","pages":"2089 - 2103"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145142815","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}