Fabrication and characterization of magnetic porous silicon with curie temperature above room temperature

In this study, we demonstrate a completely novel synthesis route for producing magnetic porous silicon. The magnetic properties of this material are induced by manganese atoms. The Mn-doping in Si is achieved by ion implantation. A subsequent anodization of the substrate is done to turn it into porous silicon. Several characterization techniques, such as transmission electronic microscopy, atomic force microscopy and photoluminescence are combined to probe the structural and the optical properties of this material. Furthermore, temperature and magnetic field dependent magnetization is analyzed using superconducting quantum interference device. In addition to the well-reported structural and optical properties of the porous silicon, our Mn-doped porous silicon samples exhibit a magnetic behavior with a curie temperature (T-C) higher than room temperature. These results indicate that the magnetic porous silicon can be integrated with microelectronics and photonics technologies to produce new devices, such as magnetophotonic crystals and polarized emitting diodes.