Low-temperature annealing of hydrogenated amorphous silicon ($a$-Si:H) is investigated. An identical energy barrier is found for the reduction of deep defects in the bulk of $a$-Si:H films and at the interface such layers form with crystalline Si ($c$-Si) surfaces. This finding gives direct physical evidence that the defects determining $a$-Si:H/$c$-Si interface recombination are silicon dangling bonds and that also kinetically this interface has no unique features compared to the $a$-Si:H bulk.

• Received 20 July 2011

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.85.113302