Electrochromic properties of nanocrystalline WO3 thin films grown on flexible substrates by plasma-assisted evaporation technique

Thin films of Tungsten trioxide (WO₃) were deposited on ITO-coated flexible Kapton substrates by plasma-assisted activated reactive evaporation (ARE) technique. The influence of growth and microstructure on optoelectrochromic properties of WO₃ thin films was studied. The nanocrystalline WO₃ films grown at substrate temperature of 250°C were composed of vertically elongated cone-shaped grains of size 65 nm with relative density of 0.71. These WO₃ films demonstrated higher optical transmittance of 85% in the visible region with estimated optical band gap of 3.39 eV and exhibited better optical modulation of 66% and coloration efficiency of 52.8 cm²/C at the wavelength of 550 nm.     

Photoluminescence properties of nitrogen-doped ZnO films deposited on ZnO single crystal substrates by the plasma-assisted reactive evaporation method

Photoluminescence (PL) spectra of nitrogen-doped ZnO films (ZnO:N films) grown epitaxially on n-type ZnO single crystal substrates by using the plasma-assisted reactive evaporation method were measured at 5 K. In PL spectra, free exciton emission at about 3.375 eV was very strong and emissions at 3.334 and 3.31 eV were observed. These two emissions are discussed in this paper. The nitrogen concentration in ZnO:N films measured by secondary ion mass spectroscopy was 10^19-20 cm⁻³. Current-voltage characteristics of the junction consisting of an n-type ZnO single crystal substrate and ZnO:N film showed good rectification. Also, ultraviolet radiation and visible light were emitted from this junction under a forward bias at room temperature. It is therefore thought that ZnO:N films have good crystallinity and that doped nitrogen atoms play a role as acceptors in ZnO:N films to form a good pn junction. From these phenomena and the excitation intensity dependency of PL spectra, emissions at 3.334 and 3.31 eV were assigned to neutral acceptor-bound exciton (A⁰X) emission and a donor-acceptor pair (DAP) emission due to doped nitrogen, respectively.     

Dielectric properties of Ta2O5 films grown on silicon substrates plasma nitrided in N2O

C–V characteristics and leakage currents of metal-insulator-silicon structures containing insulating film composed of thermally grown Ta₂O₅ and ultrathin SiO_xN_y layer grown in N₂O plasma were studied. Leakage in the structures is explained by tunneling in SiO_xN_y layer and Poole–Frenkel internal field assisted emission in Ta₂O₅. Theoretical calculations were made by known theoretical expression, while using fitted values of the thickness of SiO_xN_y, defect related constants for Ta₂O₅, and compensation degree r=1 for Ta₂O₅. For positive gate biases, tunneling of electrons from the silicon conduction band through SiO₂ is considered, while for gates negatively biased, tunneling of holes from the silicon valence band. In the early stage of nitridation barriers for injection decreases rapidly, then much slower. The thickness of the SiO_xN_y layer increases slowly with the nitridation time, as a result of the created barrier against diffusion of silicon atoms created by nitrogen incorporated at the interface between the silicon and oxide SiO_xN_y layer. PACS 73.40.Qv; 73.50.-h; 73.61.-r An erratum to this article can be found at .     

Characterization of nitrogen-doped ZnO thin films grown by plasma-assisted pulsed laser deposition on sapphire substrates

The crystalline, optical and electrical properties of N-doped ZnO thin films were measured using X-ray diffraction, photoluminescence and Hall effect apparatus, respectively. The samples were grown using pulsed laser deposition on sapphire substrates coated priorly with ZnO buffer layers. For the purpose of acceptor doping, an electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma source operated as a low-energy ion source was used for nitrogen incorporation in the samples. The X-ray diffraction analyses indicated some deterioration of the ZnO thin film with nitrogen incorporation. Temperature-dependent Van der Pauw measurements showed consistent p-type behavior over the measured temperature range of 200–450 K, with typical room temperature hole concentrations and mobilities of 5×10¹⁵ cm⁻³ and 7 cm²/V s, respectively. Low temperature photoluminescence spectra consisted of a broad emission band centered around 3.2 eV. This emission is characterized by the absence of the green deep-defect band and the presence of a band around 3.32 eV.     

Optical properties and structural characteristics of ZnO thin films grown on a-plane sapphire substrates by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy

We investigated structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films grown on (112?0) a-plane sapphire substrates using plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. Negligible biaxial stress in ZnO thin films is due to the use of (112?0) a-plane sapphire substrates and slow substrate cooling. The 14 K photoluminescence spectrum shows a blueshift of energy positions compared with ZnO single crystal. A donor with binding energy of 43 meV and an acceptor with binding energy of ～170 meV are identified by well-resolved photoluminescence spectra. A characteristic emission band at 3.320 eV (so-called A-line) is studied. Based on analysis from photoluminescence spectra, the origin of the A-line, it seems, is more likely an (e, A°) transition, in which defect behaves as an acceptor. The room-temperature photoluminescence is dominated by the FX at 3.307 eV, which is an indication of strongly reduced defect density in ZnO thin films.     

Electrical properties of flash-evaporated V2O5 films

Electrical properties of vanadium-pentoxide flash-evaporated films are reported. Transport parameters are investigated as functions of growth conditions and post-deposition treatments. The conduction mechanism is analyzed using the small polaron hopping model. The main features of the electrical conductivity such as the polaron hopping energy, the disorder energy term and the density of states are determined. Paper presented at 3rd Euroconference on Solid State Ionics, Teulada, Sardinia, Italy, Sept. 15–22, 1996     

Magnetic properties of SrRu0.9Fe0.1O3 thin films grown on different surfaces of SrTiO3 substrates

We stabilized SrRu_0.9Fe_0.1O₃ single-crystalline films on SrTiO₃ (001) and SrTiO₃ (110) substrates using epitaxial strain during thin-film growth. X-ray diffraction (XRD) θ–2θ scans showed strong peaks demonstrating single-crystal quality. Fe doping in SrRuO₃ had negative effects on the ferromagnetic properties, such as decreasing the T_c and saturated magnetic moment, as well as weakening the ferromagnetism. The negative effects were reduced when a suitable surface of the cubic substrate was selected for thin-film SrRuO₃ growth. We found that the ferromagnetic properties, such as the T_c and saturated magnetic moment, differed depending on the substrate surface. The observed differences are discussed in terms of Ru–Ru nearest-neighbor distance.     

Microstructure and magnetic properties studies of SmCo5 thin films grown on MgO and glass substrates

In this work, SmCo₅ thin films are deposited on single crystal MgO (1 0 0) and amorphous glass substrates with a Cr underlayer at 400 °C by sputtering. A comparison study shows that the microstructures and magnetic properties are different in the two SmCo₅ films on the MgO (1 0 0) and glass substrates, respectively. An epitaxial growth of Cr-(2 0 0)〈1 1 0〉/SmCo₅-(1 1 2¯ 0)〈0 0 0 1〉 is achieved on the MgO (1 0 0) single crystal substrate with an average grain size of 20 nm for SmCo₅. On the amorphous glass substrate, no significant crystallographic texture is found in the Cr underlayer. After the deposition of SmCo₅, a weak texture of (1 1 2¯ 0) is observed with an average grain size of 8 nm. High remanence ratio value in this film is probably due to strong exchange coupling. Both SmCo₅ films show high in-plane coercivity, high in-plane anisotropy and remanence enhancement.     

LBO晶体上ZrO2薄膜的显微结构和光学性质

用电子束蒸发方法在三种不同取向的三硼酸锂(LiB3O5,简称LBO)晶体上沉积了ZrO2薄膜.采用分光光度计和X射线衍射技术对LBO晶体基底结构对薄膜光学性质和显微结构的影响进行了研究.实验结果表明基底结构对薄膜的显微结构和光学性质具有明显影响,即X-LBO,Y-LBO和Z-LBO上沉积的ZrO2薄膜分别沿m(-212),m(021)和o(130)择优生长,且m(021)择优取向的ZrO2薄膜具有最高的折射率和最小的晶格不匹配.     

XAFS analysis of indium oxynitride thin films grown on silicon substrates

Local structure of indium oxynitride thin films grown on silicon substrates was investigated by X‐ray absorption fine structure technique incorporated with first principle calculations. The thin films were grown by using reactive gas timing radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering technique with nitrogen (N₂) and oxygen (O₂) as reactive gasses. The reactive gasses were interchangeably fed into sputtering system at five different time intervals. The gas feeding time intervals of N₂:O₂ are 30 : 0, 30 : 5, 30 : 10, 30 : 20 and 10 : 30 s, respectively. The analysis results can be divided into three main categories. Firstly, the films grown with 30 : 0 and 30 : 5 s gas feeding time intervals are wurtzite structure indium nitride with 25 and 43% oxygen contaminations, respectively. Secondary, the film grown with 10 : 30 s gas feeding time intervals is bixbyite structure indium oxide. Finally, the films are alloying between indium nitride and indium oxide for other growth condition. The fitted radial distribution spectra, the structural parameters and the combination ratios of the alloys are discussed. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Photocatalytic TiO2 thin films deposited on flexible substrates by radio frequency (RF) reactive magnetron sputtering

Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) thin films were deposited on flexible polycarbonate (PC) substrates by radio frequency (RF) reactive magnetron sputtering. The target was metallic titanium, argon was the plasma gas and oxygen was the reactive gas. Taguchi’s method, which uses an L₉ (3⁴) orthogonal array, signal-to-noise ratio and analysis of variance (ANOVA), was employed to study the performance of the deposition process. The effects of the deposition parameters on the structure, morphology and photocatalytic performance of the TiO₂ films were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction, and UV-vis-NIR spectroscopy. Experiments varied RF power (50, 100, 150 W), deposition time (2, 3, 4 h), O₂/(Ar + O₂) argon/oxygen ratios (40, 60, 80%) and substrate temperatures (room, 80, 120 °C), to optimize the photoinduced decomposition of methylene blue (MB). The experimental results illustrate the effectiveness of this approach.     

Mechanical stability of ferrimagnetic CoFe2O4 flexible thin films

We fabricated high-quality ferrimagnetic CoFe₂O₄ (CFO) thin films on a mica substrate using a pulsed laser deposition technique. High-resolution X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy revealed that the film grew epitaxially with the relationships of CFO <1-10> || Mica [010] and CFO [111] || Mica [001]. The films were highly flexible in terms of both inward and outward bending, and exhibited clear ferrimagnetic hysteresis with weak anisotropy in both the in-plane and out-of-plane directions. We observed that the magnetization of CFO films was robust against mechanical stimuli without microcracks. The remnant magnetization and coercive field were within 8% and 11% over a strain of ±0.54%. As the number of bending cycles increased, the magnetic easy axis became more closely aligned to the out-of-plane direction, without any noticeable change in domain size.     

Quantum size effects in metal thin films grown on quasicrystalline substrates

We have investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy the growth of Bi and Ag thin films on the fivefold surface of Al63Cu24Fe13 and Al72Pd19.5Mn8.5 quasicrystal, respectively. For both systems, we observe the formation of islands with magic height, corresponding to the stacking of a specific number of atomic layers. We interpret this unusual growth morphology in terms of quantum size effects, arising from the confinement of the electron within the film. The magic island heights are thus a direct manifestation of the electronic structure of the quasicrystalline substrates.     

利用电泳法在金属基底上制备MgB2超导厚膜

利用电泳技术在高熔点金属基底Ta,Mo和W上制备MgB2 超导厚膜 .厚膜中的MgB2 晶粒结合紧密 ,粒度小于1μm ,呈随机取向生长 .电阻测量表明沉积在Ta ,Mo,W上的MgB2 厚膜的超导起始转变温度分别为 3 6.5K ,3 4.8K ,3 3 .4K ,对应的转变宽度为 0 .3K ,1.5K和 2 .0K .三种基底上制备的MgB2 厚膜的临界电流密度在不同温度下随外磁场的变化情况基本相同 ,MgB2 Mo厚膜的临界电流密度在 5K ,1T时可达 1.2× 10 5A cm2 .本工艺可以随意控制膜的厚度、形状、大小 ,也可进行双面沉积 ,且制备出的MgB2 厚膜的超导性能优良 ,为MgB2 超导体的实用化提供了可能     

Structural, electrical and optical properties of AgInS2 thin films grown by thermal evaporation method

Structural electrical and optical properties of AgInS₂ (AIS) thin films grown by the single-source thermal evaporation method were studied. The X-ray diffraction spectra indicated that the AIS single phase was successful grown by annealing above 400 °C in air. The AIS grain sizes became large with increasing the annealing temperatures. All polycrystalline AIS thin films were sulfur-poor from the electron probe microanalysis and indicated n-type conduction by the Van der Pauw technique. It was deduced that the sulfur vacancies were dominant in the films and enhanced n-type conduction.     

电化学沉积高c轴取向ZnO薄膜及其光学性能分析

采用阴极还原方法,在透明导电玻璃(ITO)上制备了高c轴择优取向的ZnO薄膜.通过X射线衍射、扫描电子显微镜等表征技术,研究了沉积电流对ZnO薄膜的结构、应力状态及表面形貌的影响;利用光致荧光光谱及透射光谱等分析方法,探讨了沉积电流变化对ZnO薄膜的光学性能的影响.研究结果显示:各沉积电流下均可制得高c轴取向的ZnO薄膜;薄膜表面形貌受电流的影响较大;从透射谱可以看出,薄膜在可见光波段有较高透射率,且薄膜厚度随沉积电流的增大而增大.光致荧光测量表明,电化学沉积的ZnO薄膜具有明显的带隙展宽.而且,随着沉积电流的增加,带隙发光强度逐渐减弱,缺陷发光逐渐增强.     

Thermally activated crystallization of Nb2O5 grown on Pt electrode

The influence of the local crystallographic orientation of the polycrystalline bottom platinum electrode on the crystallization of niobium pentoxide thin films during their rapid thermal annealing was investigated by X-ray diffraction, X-ray reflectivity and transmission electron microscopy. The Nb₂O₅ thin films under study were reactively sputtered in a mixed O₂/Ar atmosphere and subsequently subjected to the annealing in argon atmosphere at temperatures ranging from 500 ^°C to 700 ^°C. The X-ray diffraction confirmed a transition from the amorphous niobium oxide to the crystalline orthorhombic Nb₂O₅ for temperatures between 500 ^°C and 600 ^°C. The X-ray reflectivity measurements showed that the crystallization process was accompanied by a continuous increase of the electron density in Nb₂O₅ and by a rapid increase of the surface roughness at 700 ^°C. It was further observed by transmission electron microscopy that Nb₂O₅ crystallizes selectively and that the crystalline domains of Nb₂O₅ possess a strong orientation relationship to the platinum from the bottom electrode. The orientation relationship $(\bar{1} 1 1)_{\mathrm{Pt}}\,{\parallel}\, (\bar{1} \bar{6}0)_{\mathrm{Nb}_{2}\mathrm{O}_{5}}$ was identified as the most beneficial one for crystallization of Nb₂O₅.