Interface states in a cleaved metal-silicon junction

Abstract
By studying the capacitance of a forward‐biased Schottky diode it is possible to determine the energy distribution and relaxation time of interface states. This method is applied to contacts between chromium and silicon cleaved in ultrahigh vacuum. The presence in the silicon gap of interface states in equilibrium with the semiconductor and distributed in a set of energy bands is established. The characteristics of each band (energy position, density, and capture cross section) are identified. The origin of these states is discussed, and it is argued that they are characteristic of the silicon surface.