Phosphorescence and thermally stimulated luminescence of amorphous SiO2

Thermally Stimulated Luminescence (TSL) and phosphorescence measurements excited by X- and beta rays have been performed above room temperature on fused quartz and on thin SiO2 films deposited on a silicon substrate by the technique of chemical vapour deposition. Although in these types of SiO2 the basic TSL features, noticeably the prominent glow peak at 60 < T < 120°C, are similar to those already studied in quartz, some behaviours are different. Specifically, the maximum temperature of the glow peak shifts linearly to higher temperatures as a consequence of partial pre-heating treatments and the phosphorescence decay shows a t-1 power law. The implications of these results are discussed also in comparison with the corresponding ones of crystalline quartz and with preliminary data on thermally stimulated currents measurements. © 1994.