Ultrafast carrier trapping in microcrystalline silicon observed in optical pump–terahertz probe measurements

We report on direct evidence of ultrafast carrier dynamics displaying features on the picosecond time scale in microcrystalline silicon (μc-Si:H). The dynamics of photogenerated carriers is studied by using above-band-gap optical excitation and probing the instantaneous carrier mobility and density with a THz pulse. Within the first picoseconds after excitation, the THz transmission transients show a fast initial decay of the photoinduced absorption followed by a slower decrease due to carrier recombination. We propose that the initial fast decay in the THz transients is due to carrier capture in the trapping states.