High resolution microimaging with pulsed electrically-detected magnetic resonance

The investigation of paramagnetic species (such as point defects, dopants, and impurities) in solid-state electronic devices is of significance, as they affect device performance. Conventionally these species are detected and imaged by ESR technique. Many times ESR is not sensitive enough to deal with miniature devices having small number of paramagnetic species and high spatial heterogeneity. This limitation can in principle be overcome by employing a more sensitive method called elec.-detected magnetic resonance, which is based on measuring the effect of paramagnetic species on the elec. current of the device while inducing electron spin flip transitions. However, up until now, measurement of the current of the device could not reveal the spatial heterogeneity of its paramagnetic species. Here we provide for the 1st time high resolution microimages of paramagnetic species in an operating solar cell using elec.-detected magnetic resonance. The method is based on unique microwave pulse sequence for excitation and detection of the elec. signal under static magnetic field and powerful pulsed magnetic field gradients that spatially encode the elec. current information of the sample. The method developed here can be of wide use for the nondestructive 3D inspection of paramagnetic species in a variety of semiconductor devices.