Abstract :
Analysis of low-temperature photoluminescence measurements performed on single silicon nanocrystals is presented. The luminescence
emission linewidth of Si nanocrystals is found to be less than thermal broadening at low temperature, confirming the atomic-like nature of their
energetic states. Beside the main peak the low-temperature spectra reveal a 6 meV replica, the origin of which is discussed. For some of the
investigated dots, we also observe a 60 meV transverse optical (TO) phonon replica. The regular arrangement of individual nanocrystals used in
this work enables combined high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and low-temperature photoluminescence characterization of
the same single quantum dot.
