Factors affecting the electro-optical and structural characteristics of nano crystalline Cu doped (Cd–Zn)S films

This work investigates the effects of the temperature, deposition time and annealing ambient on the electro-optical and structural properties of nano crystalline (Cd–Zn)S films prepared by chemical bath deposition (CBD). The deposited films being uniform and adherent to the glass substrates are amorphous in nature and the crystallinity as well as the grain size is found to increase on post-deposition annealing. The obtained specimens are thoroughly characterized before and after annealing paying particular attention to their structure, composition and morphology. Annealing in air reduces the extent of disorder in grain boundaries and energy band-gap. A correlation between the structural and optical properties is investigated in detail. The surface morphology and structural properties of the as-deposited and annealed (Cd–Zn)S thin films are studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and optical transmission spectra. The optical transmission spectra are recorded within the range of 300–800 nm and 300–900 nm. The electroluminescent (EL) intensity is found to be maximum at a particular temperature, which decreases with further increase in temperature and peaks of photoluminescent (PL) and EL spectra are centered at 546 nm and 592 nm. The emission intensity also increases with increasing thickness of the film.     

Structural and optical properties of chromotrope 2R thin films of different thicknesses

Chromotrope 2R (CHR) films of different thicknesses have been prepared using spin coater. The material has been characterized using FT-IR, DTA and X-ray diffraction. The XRD of the material in powder and thin film forms showed polycrystalline structure with triclinic phase. Preferred orientation at the (1 1 4) plane is observed for the deposited films. Initial indexing of the XRD pattern was performed using “Crystalfire” computer program. Miller indices, h k l, values for each diffraction line in X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectrum were calculated and indexed for the first time. The DTA thermograms of CHR powder have been recorded in the temperature range 25–350 °C with different heating rates. The spectra of the infra-red absorption allow characterization of vibration modes for the powder and thin film. The effect of film thickness on the optical properties has been studied in the UV-visible-NIR regions. The films show high transmittance exceeding 0.90 in the NIR region λ > 800 nm. The intensity of the absorption peaks for λ < 800 nm are enhanced as the film thickness increase. The absorption bands are attributed to the (π–π*) and (n–π*) molecular transitions. The optical properties have been analyzed according to the single-oscillator model and the dispersion energy parameters as well as the free charge carrier concentration have been determined. The optical energy gap as well as the oscillator strength and electric dipole strength have been calculated.     

Influence of argon ambience on the structural,morphological and optical properties of pulsed laser ablated zinc sulfide thin films

Nanostructured zinc suplhide thin films are successfully deposited on quartz substrates using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) under different argon pressures (0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 Pa). The influence of argon ambience on the microstructural, optical and luminescence properties of zinc sulfide (ZnS) thin films is systematically investigated. The GIXRD data suggests rhombohedral structure for ZnS films prepared under different argon ambience. Self-assembly of grains into well-defined patterns along the y direction is observed in the AFM image of the film deposited under argon pressure 20 Pa. All the films show a blue shift in optical band gap. This can be due to the quantum confinement effect and less widening of conduction and valence band for the films with less thickness and smaller grain size. The PL spectra of the different films are recorded at excitation wavelengths 250 nm and 325 nm and the spectra are interpreted. The PL spectra of the films recorded at excitation wavelength 325 nm show intense yellow emission. The film deposited under an argon pressure of 15 Pa shows the highest PL intensity for excitation wavelength 325 nm. For the PL spectra (excitation at 250 nm), the highest PL intensity is observed for the film prepared under argon free ambience. In our study, 15 Pa is the optimum argon pressure for better crystallinity and intense yellow emission when excited at 325 nm.     

Comparative study on structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films prepared by PLD using ZnO powder target and ceramic target

Zinc oxide thin films have been obtained in O₂ ambient at a pressure of 1.3 Pa by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) using ZnO powder target and ceramic target. The effect of temperature on structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films was investigated systematically by XRD, SEM, FTIR and PL spectra. The results show that the best structural and optical properties can be achieved for ZnO thin film fabricated at 700 °C using powder target and at 400 °C using ceramic target, respectively. The PL spectrum reveals that the efficiency of UV emission of ZnO thin film fabricated by using powder target is low, and the defect emission of ZnO thin film derived from Zn_i and O_i is high.     

Optical properties of PMN–PT thin films prepared using pulsed laser deposition

(1 ? x)Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃–xPbTiO₃ (PMN–PT) thin films have been deposited on quartz substrates using pulsed laser deposition (PLD). Crystalline microstructure of the deposited PMN–PT thin films has been investigated with X-ray diffraction (XRD). Optical transmission spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy are used to characterize optical properties of the deposited PMN–PT thin films. The results show that the PMN–PT thin films of perovskite structure have been formed, and the crystalline and optical properties of the PMN–PT thin films can be improved as increasing the annealing temperature to 750 °C, but further increasing the annealing temperature to 950 °C may lead to a degradation of the crystallinity and the optical properties of the PMN–PT thin films. In addition, a weak second harmonic intensity (SHG) has been observed for the PMN–PT thin film formed at the optimum annealing temperature of 750 °C according to Maker fringe method. All these suggest that the annealing temperature has significant effect on the structural and optical properties of the PMN–PT thin films.     

Physical properties of ZnSe thin films: Air and vacuum annealing evolution to buffer layer applications

In order to develop high efficiency solar cell device by replacing conventional hazardous CdS window layer by environmental friendly Zn-based buffer layer, ZnSe thin films of thickness 100 nm were grown on glass and ITO substrates employing electron beam evaporation technique followed by air and vacuum annealing at temperature 100 °C, 200 °C and 300 °C. As-grown and annealed films were subjected to characterization tools like XRD, UV-Vis spectrophotometer, SEM, EDS and source meter. Structural results reveal the amorphous phase, SEM images indicate uniform deposition without pin holes and EDS patterns confirm the deposition. Transmittance is observed to be high in visible region and band gap is found to change with temperature of the treatment and I-V measurements demonstrate ohmic nature. On the basis of optimized results, the films annealed at 200 °C in vacuum may be used as buffer layer to develop high efficiency Cd-based and CIGS thin film solar cells.     

Optical properties of nanostructured InSe thin films

Thin films of InSe were prepared by thermal evaporation technique. The as-deposited films have nano-scale crystalline nature and the annealing enhanced the degree of crystallinity. The optical properties of nanocrystalline thin films of InSe were studied using spectrophotometric measurements of transmittance, T, and reflectance, R, at normal incidence of light in the wavelength range 200–2500 nm. The optical constants (refractive index, n, and absorption index, k) were calculated using a computer program based on Murmann's exact equations. The calculated optical constants are independent of the film thickness. The optical dispersion parameters have been analysed by single oscillator model. The type of transition in InSe films is indirect allowed with a value of energy gap equals to 1.10 eV, which increased to 1.23 eV upon annealing.     

Effect of GZO thickness and annealing temperature on the structural,electrical and optical properties of GZO/Ag/GZO sandwich films

The GZO/Ag/GZO sandwich films were deposited on glass substrates by RF magnetron sputtering of Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) and ion-beam sputtering of Ag at room temperature. The effect of GZO thickness and annealing temperature on the structural, electrical and optical properties of these sandwich films was investigated. The microstructures of the films were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD). X-ray diffraction measurements indicate that the GZO layers in the sandwich films are polycrystalline with the ZnO hexagonal structure and have a preferred orientation with the c-axis perpendicular to the substrates. For the sandwich film with upper and under GZO thickness of 40 and 30 nm, respectively, it owns the maximum figure of merit of 5.3 × 10⁻² Ω⁻¹ with a resistivity of 5.6 × 10⁻⁵ Ω cm and an average transmittance of 90.7%. The electrical property of the sandwich films is improved by post annealing in vacuum. Comparing with the as-deposited sandwich film, the film annealed in vacuum has a remarkable 42.8% decrease in resistivity. The sandwich film annealed at the temperature of 350 °C in vacuum shows a sheet resistance of 5 Ω/sq and a transmittance of 92.7%, and the figure of merit achieved is 9.3 × 10⁻² Ω⁻¹.     

Impact of chloride treatment on the physical properties of polycrystalline thin CdTe films for solar cell applications

This report presents the microstructural, optoelectrical and surface morphological properties of e-beam evaporated thin CdTe films with the activation of post-chloride treatment. The thin films having thickness 800 nm were deposited onto glass and ITO substrates subsequently processed with CdCl₂ treatment at various temperatures and then subjected to different characterization tools to investigate the physical properties. The films were found to be polycrystalline in nature having a cubic phase with preferred orientation (111) up to 320 °C and completely oxidized at 470 °C while the ohmic nature of films is confirmed by I–V characteristics. The absorbance is found to be higher in the visible range and lowest transmittance is observed for film processed at 170 °C. The surface morphology reveals that films have uniform surface with improved grain growth and elemental analysis confirms the deposition and treatment. The optimized results attract attention to use the processed films at 170 °C as an effective absorber-layer in CdTe based solar cells.     

Electrochemical reactions of lithium with transition metal stannides

High-quality crystalline MSn₂ (M = Cr and Co) thin films have been successfully fabricated by reactive pulsed laser deposition. The physical and electrochemical properties of the as-deposited thin films have been investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), galvanostatic cycling and cyclic voltammetry (CV). XRD measurement indicates that the as-deposited thin films prepared at 400 °C consisted mainly of MSn₂ (M = Cr and Co) with a small quantity of metal tin. The specific reversible capacities of CrSn₂ and CoSn₂ thin film electrodes are found to be 467 mA h/g and 465 mA h/g, respectively. A mechanism involving an irreversible decomposition of MSn₂ (M = Cr and Co) and a classical alloying process of Sn is proposed. MSn₂ (M = Cr and Co) as the starting anode materials for conversion to the Li–Sn alloy can improve its electrochemical performance with high reversible capacity and good stable cycle.     

Effect of thickness on the structural,optical and electrical properties of thermally evaporated PbI2 thin films

This work describes the physical properties of lead iodide (PbI₂) thin films with different thicknesses that were deposited on ultrasonically cleaned glass substrates using a thermal evaporation technique at 5×10^-6 torr. The initial material was purified by the zone refining technique under an atmosphere of argon gas. XRD analysis of the material demonstrates that the thin films were preferably oriented along the (001) direction. The size of the crystallites was calculated from the Scherer relation and found to be in the range of ～5–10 nm, with higher values being observed for increasing film thicknesses. The optical energy band gaps were evaluated and determined to belong to direct transitions. Because the band gap increased with decreasing film thickness, a systematic blue shift was observed. The surface morphologies of PbI₂ films exhibited a clear increase in grain size with increasing film thickness. The photoluminescence and dc conductivity of the thin films are also discussed.     

The influence of Au thickness on the structural,optical and electrical properties of ZnO/Au/ZnO multilayer films

Transparent and conductive ZnO/Au/ZnO (ZAZ) multilayer films were deposited on glass substrates by magnetron sputtering without intentional substrate heating. The thickness of Au interlayer was set at 1, 2 and 3 nm.The observed structural, optical and electrical properties were dependent on the thickness of the Au interlayer. For all of the ZAZ films, the diffraction peaks in the XRD pattern were identified as the (002) and (103) planes of a ZnO films and the (111) plane of an Au interlayer. The ZAZ films with a 2 nm thick Au interlayer showed a higher figure of merit than the other ZAZ films prepared in this study, and they also demonstrated the relatively high work function of 5.13 eV.From these results, we concluded that a ZAZ film with a 2 nm thick Au interlayer is an alternative candidate for use as a transparent electrode in OLEDs and various flat panel displays.     

Chemical bath-deposited ZnS thin films: Preparation and characterization

Chemical bath deposition of ZnS thin films from NH₃/SC(NH₂)₂/ZnSO₄ solutions has been studied. The effect of various process parameters on the growth and the film quality are presented. The influence on the growth rate of solution composition and the structural, optical properties of the ZnS thin films deposited by this method have been studied. The XRF analysis confirmed that volume of oxygen of the as-deposited film is very high. The XRD analysis of as-deposited films shows that the films are cubic ZnS structure. The XRD analysis of annealed films shows the annealed films are cubic ZnS and ZnO mixture structure. Those results confirmed that the as-deposited films have amorphous Zn(OH)₂. SEM studies of the ZnS thin films grown on various growth phases show that ZnS film formed in the none-film phase is discontinuous. ZnS film formed in quasi-linear phase shows a compact and a granular structure with the grain size about 100 nm. There are adsorbed particles on films formed in the saturation phase. Transmission measurement shows that an optical transmittance is about 90% when the wavelength over 500 nm. The band gap (E_g) value of the deposited film is about 3.51 eV.     

Internal stress influence on the coercivity of FeCuNbSiB thin films

Thin films of Finemet-type alloy with thickness varying from 50 to 1000 nm have been deposited by RF sputtering and annealed at temperature ranging from 150 to 450 °C. Their magnetic and structural properties have been characterized using alternating gradient field magnetometry and X-ray diffraction. In addition, the stress in the films has been measured as a function of temperature from the curvature of the wafers using a laser scanning technique.The coercive field of the films first decreases with annealing temperature due to stress relaxation, and then increases again when crystallisation begins. The optimal annealing conditions comprises between the glass transition and the crystallisation temperature.Its is observed that the coercivity of the as-deposited material is continuously decreasing as the thickness increases, following an inverse square root dependence, in relation with the stress-induced magneto-elastic contribution to the total anisotropy. By opposition, it has been found that the coercive field of devitrified and totally relaxed films is inversely proportional to film thickness. In order to explain this evolution, a model is proposed, based on random anisotropy considerations applied to thin films in which the anisotropy was considered localised in the dimension of thickness.     

Comparison of electrochromic amorphous and crystalline electron beam deposited WO3 thin films

Tungsten oxide (WO₃) thin films were prepared by an electron beam deposition technique. Films were deposited onto fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO)-coated glass substrates maintained at 523 K. The as-deposited films were found to be amorphous and crystallized after annealing at 673 K. The electrochromic and optical properties, structure, and morphology are strongly dependent on the annealing conditions. Cyclic voltammetry (C-V) was carried out in the potential range −1 to +1 V. Before and after colouration, the films were characterized by measuring transmittance and reflectance. The colouration efficiencies at 630 nm are about 39.4 cm² C⁻¹ and 122.2 cm² C⁻¹ for amorphous and crystalline films, respectively. An investigation of self-bleaching for the coloured film revealed that the film fades gradually over time.     

Structural and optical properties of Mn-doped ZnO nanocrystalline thin films with the different dopant concentrations

The transparent nanocrystalline thin films of undoped zinc oxide and Mn-doped (Zn_1−xMn_xO) have been deposited on glass substrates via the sol–gel technique using zinc acetate dehydrate and manganese chloride as precursor. The as-deposited films with the different manganese compositions in the range of 2.5–20 at% were pre-heated at 100 °C for 1 h and 200 °C for 2 h, respectively, and then crystallized in air at 560 °C for 2 h. The structural properties and morphologies of the undoped and doped ZnO thin films have been investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to examine the morphology and microstructure of the thin films. Optical properties of the thin films were determined by photoluminescence (PL) and UV/Vis spectroscopy. The analyzed results indicates that the obtained films are of good crystal quality and have smooth surfaces, which have a pure hexagonal wurtzite ZnO structure without any Mn related phases. Room temperature photoluminescence is observed for the ZnO and Mn-doped ZnO thin films.     

Low reflectance sputtered vanadium oxide thin films on silicon

Vanadium oxide thin films on silicon (Si) substrate are grown by pulsed radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering technique at RF power in the range of 100–700 W at room temperature. Deposited thin films are characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) techniques to investigate microstructural, phase, electronic structure and oxide state characteristics. The reflectance and transmittance spectra of the films and the Si substrate are recorded at the solar region (200–2300 nm) of the spectral window. Substantial reduction in reflectance and increase in transmittance is observed for the films grown beyond 200 W. Further, optical constants viz. absorption coefficient, refractive index and extinction coefficient of the deposited vanadium oxide films are evaluated.     

Effect of annealing on structure and optical properties of Ga5Se95 films

To investigate the effect of annealing on the structural and optical properties of a binary compound Ga₅Se₉₅, thin films of Ga₅Se₉₅ have been deposited on quartz substrates at room temperature by the thermal evaporation technique. X-ray diffraction patterns showed that the films before and after annealing at 573 K have polycrystalline texture and exhibit tetragonal structure. The dependences of the optical constants, the refractive index n and extinction coefficient k were studied in the spectral range of 200 nm to 2500 nm. The normal dispersion of the refractive index of the films could be described using the Wemple–DiDomenco single-oscillator model. Analysis of absorption index data reveals that as-deposited Ga₅Se₉₅ films has indirect transitions with optical energy gap of 1.685 eV.     

Annealing temperature dependent on structural,optical and electrical properties of indium oxide thin films deposited by electron beam evaporation method

In the present work the influence of annealing temperature on the structural and optical properties of the In₂O₃ films deposited by electron beam evaporation technique in the presence of oxygen was studied. The deposited films were annealed from 350 to 550 °C in air. The chemical compositions of In₂O₃ films were carried out by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The film structure and surface morphologies were investigated as a function of annealing temperature by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The structural studies by XRD reveal that films exhibit preferential orientation along (2 2 2) plane. The refractive index (n), packing density and porosity (%) of films were arrived from transmittance spectral data obtained in the range 250–1000 nm by UV–vis-spectrometer. The optical band gap of In₂O₃ film was observed and found to be varying from 3.67 to 3.85 eV with the annealing temperature.     

Preparation of cadmium stannate films by spray pyrolysis technique

Cadmium stannate thin films were prepared by spray pyrolysis technique using cadmium acetate and tin(II) chloride precursors at substrate temperatures 450 °C and 500 °C. XRD pattern confirms the formation of orthorhombic (1 1 1) cadmium stannate phase for the film prepared at substrate temperature of 500 °C, whereas, films prepared at 450 °C are amorphous. Film formation does not occur at substrate temperature from 300 to 375 °C. SEM images reveal that the surface of the prepared Cd₂SnO₄ film is smooth. The average optical transmittance of ∼86% is obtained for the film prepared at substrate temperature of 500 °C with the film thickness of 400 nm. The optical band gap value of the films varies from 2.7 to 2.94 eV. The film prepared at 500 °C shows a minimum resistivity of 35.6 × 10⁻⁴ Ω cm.