Enhancement of the Schottky Effect in a Si(100)—Water System Using Porous Polymeric Track-Etched Membranes

Abstract

The kinetics of variation in the electronic work function (EWF) of single-crystal silicon Si(100) exposed to liquid water is studied. It is shown that immersing porous film track-etched membranes (TEMs) with pore sizes of 3.0–0.1 μm in water containing Si(100) considerably reduces the EWF of single-crystal silicon. It is found that a similar effect is observed when TEMs in the form of caps are held over the surface of water containing Si(100) at a distances of around 1.5–2.0 cm. It is speculated that the occurrence of a developed surface of TEMs in an open system changes the supramolecular structure of the water and leads to the formation of associates (H₂O)_n with increased dipole moments (compared to molecular moments), enhancing the Schottky effect during sorption on Si(100) surfaces.