Refractive indices of textured indium tin oxide and zinc oxide thin films

The refractive indices of textured indium tin oxide (ITO) and zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films were measured and compared. The ITO thin film grown on glass and ZnO buffered glass substrates by sputtering showed distinct differences; the refractive index of ITO on glass was about 0.05 higher than that of ITO on ZnO buffered glass in the whole visible spectrum. The ZnO thin film grown on glass and ITO buffered glass substrates by filtered vacuum arc also showed distinct differences; the refractive index of ZnO on glass was higher than that of ZnO on ITO buffered glass in the red and green region, but lower in the blue region. The largest refractive index difference of ZnO on glass and ITO buffered glass was about 0.1 in the visible spectrum. The refractive index variation was correlated with the crystal quality, surface morphology and conductivity of the thin films.     

Investigation on indium concentration dependence of solution processed indium tin oxide thin film transistors

The effect of the indium content in indium tin oxide (ITO) films fabricated using a solution-based process and ITO channel thin film transistors (TFTs) was examined as a function of the indium mole ratio. The carrier concentration and resistivity of the ITO films could be controlled by the appropriate treatments. The TFTs showed an increase in the off-current due to the enhanced conductivity of the ITO channel layer with increasing indium mole ratios, producing an increase in the field effect mobility. The characteristics of the a-ITO channel TFT showed the best performance (μ_FE of 3.0 cm² V^− 1 s^− 1, V_th of 2.0 V, and S value of 0.4 V/decade) at In:Sn = 5:1.     

Deposition by magnetron sputtering and characterization of indium tin oxide thin films

In this work the properties of indium tin oxide (ITO) films deposed on glass substrates by magnetron sputtering technique in the temperature range below 200 °C are studied by various methods. The physical properties of ITO thin films have been investigated using optical transmittance, photoluminescence, atomic force microscopy, ellipsometry, Hall-effect and four point probe methods. It is established that properties of ITO layers depend drastically on the temperature and oxygen partial pressure during the deposition process and exhibit some peculiarities of the surface morphology. It is found that the band gap energy of this material varies in the energy range from 4.1 to 4.4 eV and depends on the growth conditions. It is suggested that local deviations from the stoichiometry and defects are the main physical reasons of Burstein-Moss shift of the optical band gap.     

Eu-doped indium tin oxide thin films fabricated by sol-gel technique

We have fabricated Eu-doped indium tin oxide thin films via the conventional sol-gel technique, and confirmed that the doped Eu atoms were chemically incorporated into the indium tin oxide lattice by substituting the In sites. Optical spectra indicated that the Eu-doped films were free of any impurities leading to additional vibrational effects. Valence states of Eu ions in our Eu-doped indium tin oxide films were discussed in connection with Eu concentration.     

Remote plasma sputtering of indium tin oxide thin films for large area flexible electronics

Indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films with a specific resistivity of 3.5 × 10^− 4 Ω cm and average visible light transmission (VLT) of 90% have been reactively sputtered onto A4 Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), glass and silicon substrates using a remote plasma sputtering system.This system offers independent control of the plasma density and the target power enabling the effect of the plasma on ITO properties to be studied. Characterization of ITO on glass and silicon has shown that increasing the plasma density gives rise to a decrease in the specific resistivity and an increase in the optical band gap of the ITO films. Samples deposited at plasma powers of 1.5 kW, 2.0 kW and 2.5 kW and optimized oxygen flow rates exhibited specific resistivity values of 3.8 × 10^− 4 Ω cm, 3.7 × 10^− 4 Ω cm and 3.5 × 10^− 4 Ω cm and optical gaps of 3.48 eV, 3.51 eV and 3.78 eV respectively.The increase in plasma density also influenced the crystalline texture and the VLT increased from 70 to 95%, indicating that more oxygen is being incorporated into the growing film. It has been shown that the remote plasma sputter technique can be used in an in-line process to produce uniform ITO coatings on PET with specific resistivities of between 3.5 × 10^− 4 and 4.5 × 10^− 4 Ω cm and optical transmission of greater than 85% over substrate widths of up to 30 cm.     

Thickness dependence of structural and optical properties of indium tin oxide nanofiber thin films prepared by electron beam evaporation onto quartz substrates

Indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films, produced by electron beam evaporation technique onto quartz substrates maintained at room temperature, are grown as nanofibers. The dependence of structural and optical properties of ITO thin films on the film thickness (99-662 nm) has been reported. The crystal structure and morphology of the films are investigated by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope techniques, respectively. The particle size is found to increase with increasing film thickness without changing the preferred orientation along (2 2 2) direction. The optical properties of the films are investigated in terms of the measurements of the transmittance and reflectance determined at the normal incidence of the light in the wavelength range (250-2500 nm). The absorption coefficient and refractive index are calculated and the related optical parameters are evaluated. The optical band gap is found to decrease with the increase of the film thickness, whereas the refractive index is found to increase. The optical dielectric constant and the ratio of the free carrier concentration to its effective mass are estimated for the films.     

Ultraflat indium tin oxide films prepared by ion beam sputtering

Indium tin oxide (ITO) films with a smooth surface (root-mean-square roughness; R_rms=0.40 nm) were made using a combination of the deposition conditions in the ion beam-sputtering method. Sheet resistance was 13.8 Ω/sq for a 150-nm-thick film grown at 150 °C. Oxygen was fed into the growth chamber during film growth up to 15 nm, after which, the oxygen was turned off throughout the rest of the deposition. The surface of the films became smooth with the addition of ambient oxygen but electrical resistance increased. In films grown at 150 °C with no oxygen present, a rough surface (R_rms=2.1 nm) and low sheet resistance (14.4 Ω/sq) were observed. A flat surface (R_rms=0.5 nm) with high sheet resistance (41 Ω/sq) was obtained in the films grown with ambient oxygen throughout the film growth. Surface morphology and microstructure of the films were determined by the deposition conditions at the beginning of the growth. Therefore, fabrication of ITO films with a smooth surface and high electrical conductivity was possible by combining experimental conditions.     

Properties of indium tin oxide films deposited using High Target Utilisation Sputtering

Indium tin oxide (ITO) films were deposited on soda lime glass and polyimide substrates using an innovative process known as High Target Utilisation Sputtering (HiTUS). The influence of the oxygen flow rate, substrate temperature and sputtering pressure, on the electrical, optical and thermal stability properties of the films was investigated. High substrate temperature, medium oxygen flow rate and moderate pressure gave the best compromise of low resistivity and high transmittance. The lowest resistivity was 1.6 × 10^− 4 Ω cm on glass while that on the polyimide was 1.9 × 10^− 4 Ω cm. Substrate temperatures above 100 °C were required to obtain visible light transmittance exceeding 85% for ITO films on glass. The thermal stability of the films was mainly influenced by the oxygen flow rate and thus the initial degree of oxidation. The film resistivity was either unaffected or reduced after heating in vacuum but generally increased for oxygen deficient films when heated in air. The greatest increase in transmittance of oxygen deficient films occurred for heat treatment in air while that of the highly oxidised films was largely unaffected by heating in both media. This study has demonstrated the potential of HiTUS as a favourable deposition method for high quality ITO suitable for use in thin film solar cells.     

Growth and characterization of indium tin oxide thin films deposited on PET substrates

Transparent and conductive indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films were deposited onto polyethylene terephthalate (PET) by d.c. magnetron sputtering as the front and back electrical contact for applications in flexible displays and optoelectronic devices. In addition, ITO powder was used for sputter target in order to reduce the cost and time of the film formation processes. As the sputtering power and pressure increased, the electrical conductivity of ITO films decreased. The films were increasingly dark gray colored as the sputtering power increased, resulting in the loss of transmittance of the films. When the pressure during deposition was higher, however, the optical transmittance improved at visible region of light. ITO films deposited onto PET have shown similar optical transmittance and electrical resistivity, in comparison with films onto glass substrate. High quality films with resistivity as low as 2.5 × 10^− 3 Ω cm and transmittance over 80% have been obtained on to PET substrate by suitably controlling the deposition parameters.     

Correlation between resistivity and oxygen vacancy of hydrogen-doped indium tin oxide thin films

Thin films of indium tin oxide (ITO) sputter-deposited by dc-plasma containing deuterium on glass substrate without any heat treatments exhibited gradual lowering in electrical resistivity with increasing the deuterium content [D₂] in plasma gas by 1% and then demonstrated a jump in resistivity by further increase of [D₂] than 1%. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed that hydroxyl-bonded oxygen in ITO grew continuingly with [D₂]. Deuterium positioned at the interstitial site increased almost quantitatively with increasing [D₂]. Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy showed gradual reduction in the oxygen content of ITO with increasing [D₂] by 1% and then demonstrated an abrupt increase of the oxygen content with the increase of [D₂] than 1%. The films with [D₂] < 1% were oxygen deficient, but those with [D₂] > 1% were excess of oxygen. The most oxygen deficient film of [D₂] = 1% was the most conductive. Behavior in the resistivity with [D₂] looks parallel to that in the oxygen content. A lower resistivity of the films corresponded well to oxygen vacancy rather than hydrogen interstitial.     

Preparation of transparent conductive indium tin oxide thin films from nanocrystalline indium tin hydroxide by dip-coating method

Indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films with well-controlled layer thickness were produced by dip-coating method. The ITO was synthesized by a sol-gel technique involving the use of aqueous InCl₃, SnCl₄ and NH₃ solutions. To obtain stable sols for thin film preparation, as-prepared Sn-doped indium hydroxide was dialyzed, aged, and dispersed in ethanol. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) was applied to enhance the stability of the resulting ethanolic sols. The transparent, conductive ITO films on glass substrates were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The ITO layer thickness increased linearly during the dipping cycles, which permits excellent controllability of the film thickness in the range ~ 40-1160 nm. After calcination at 550 °C, the initial indium tin hydroxide films were transformed completely to nanocrystalline ITO with cubic and rhombohedral structure. The effects of PVP on the optical, morphological and electrical properties of ITO are discussed.     

Highly conducting indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films deposited by pulsed laser ablation

Highly conducting and transparent indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films were prepared on SiO₂ glass and silicon substrates by pulsed laser ablation (PLA) from a 90 wt.% In₂O₃-10 wt.% SnO₂ sintered ceramic target. The growths of ITO films under different oxygen pressures (P_O2) ranging from 1×10⁻⁴–5×10⁻² Torr at low substrate temperatures (T_s) between room temperature (RT) and 200°C were investigated. The opto-electrical properties of the films were found to be strongly dependent on the P_O2 during the film deposition. Under a P_O2 of 1×10⁻² Torr, ITO films with low resistivity of 5.35×10⁻⁴ and 1.75×10⁻⁴ Ω cm were obtained at RT (25°C) and 200°C, respectively. The films exhibited high carrier density and reasonably high Hall mobility at the optimal P_O2 region of 1×10⁻² to 1.5×10⁻² Torr. Optical transmittance in excess of 87% in the visible region of the solar spectrum was displayed by the films deposited at Po₂≥1×10⁻² Torr and it was significantly reduced as the P_O2 decreases.     

Laser patterning with beam shaping on indium tin oxide thin films of glass/plastic substrate

In this research the laser beam shaper component has been used to obtain top-hat intensity distribution laser beam to perform line scribing and to perform electrode patterning on Indium thin oxide (ITO) thin films deposited on glass and plastic substrate. ITO films were removed with third harmonic Nd:YAG laser processing system. The pulse duration, laser output power, pulse repetition rate and scanning speed parameters of straight line patterning and electrode patterning on different types of substrates were discussed, respectively. The experimental results are measured by optical microscope and scanning electron microscope to evaluate the processing parameters and surface properties of ITO thin films.     

Structural, electrical and optical properties of indium tin oxide thin films prepared by RF sputtering using different density ceramic targets

There is an active demand for the commercial indium tin oxide (ITO) target with density above 99% of the theoretical density (TD). Some works found the increase of the target density could lead to a slight decrease of the resistivity of the direct current (DC) sputtered ITO films, however, the possible effect of target density on the radio frequency (RF) sputtered ITO films is not clear. In this paper, ITO targets with different densities are successfully prepared. The structural, electrical and optical properties of the thin films deposited from these targets are studied at the substrate temperature of 750 °C. It is found that the target density has no effect on the above properties and the deposition rate of the RF sputtered ITO thin films, different from the DC sputtered films. So for the RF sputtered process, the target needs not high density so that the used target can be just compacted from the powders without sintering. All the as-prepared ITO films with different densities have a resistivity of 1.56 × 10⁻⁴ Ω cm and a transmittance of ∼87%, which are lower than the ITO films prepared at temperatures lower than 400 °C.     

Durability study on sputtered indium tin oxide thin film on Poly Ethylene Terephthalate substrate

This paper discusses the durability of the DC-Magnetron sputtered Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) thin films on 127-μm Poly Ethylene Terephthalate substrate under harsh environmental conditions and high cyclic bending fatigue. Two sets of experiments were conducted on a 60 Ω per square ITO sheet. The first set of experiments was conducted on samples with different temperature and humidity combinations while being subjected to cyclic bending fatigue loadings. The other set of experiments was conducted on samples with the same combinations of temperature and humidity but without bending fatigue loading. Design of experiments tool was used to study the effect of temperature, humidity, bending fatigue and the interaction among them on the percent change in electrical resistance of the ITO film. It was found that bending fatigue is the dominant factor to the electrical failure of ITO thin film. The failure was also influenced by temperature and humidity, especially combined high temperature and high humidity. Therefore, it is suggested that controlling the environmental factors during the roll to roll manufacturing process is crucial on quality of the products.     

Effects of hydrogen in working gas for sputter-deposition on surface morphology and microstructure of indium tin oxide thin films grown at room temperature

Surface morphology and microstructure of indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films sputter deposited without heat treatment were obviously different from each other depending on the hydrogen concentration [H] in the working gas. The film surface became smoother with increasing [H] to 1%, but nucleation and growth of grains were apparent above [H] = 1.5%. The width of columnar grains in the ≤200 nm-thick films narrowed from ≈100 nm to ≈50 nm with increasing [H] from 0% to 1.5%. Randomly oriented and agglomerated grains were observed for the film deposited with [H] = 3.6%. Hydrogen added to the working gas induced reduction of the grain size, and then resulted in lowering of the carrier mobility.     

Colloidal indium tin oxide nanoparticles for transparent and conductive films

Nanosized colloidal indium tin oxide (ITO) dispersion was prepared for electrically conductive and transparent coating materials. A titanate coupling agent, isopropyl tri(N-ethylenediamino)ethyl titanate, was chosen as a dispersant for the stabilization of ITO nanoparticles in organic solvent. ITO sol was deposited on a cathode ray tube panel for antistatic or electromagnetic shielding purposes, and alkyl silicate was used for the formation of an antireflective over-coat layer. The resulting double-layered coating showed low sheet resistance, which satisfied semi-TCO regulation and low reflectance of visible light. To control the electrical and optical properties of the coating layer, the effects of secondary particle size of ITO aggregates and the dispersant concentration of ITO sol were studied. The stability of ITO sol was estimated by measuring the particle size as a function of the storage days and the aggregation of colloidal ITO dispersion with storage day was explained by depletion flocculation.     

Successive deposition of layered titanium oxide/indium tin oxide films on unheated substrates by twin direct current magnetron sputtering

Layered titanium oxide/indium tin oxide (TiO₂/ITO) films were successively deposited on unheated glass substrates in situ using a twin direct current magnetron sputtering system. The layered TiO₂/ITO films exhibited a strongly polycrystalline structure that comprises anatase and rutile phases, as revealed by X-ray diffraction and Raman spectra. The X-ray photoelectron spectrum of Ti2p also verified the stoichiometric state of titanium oxide near the surface. The photo-induced hydrophilic properties of the films were determined from changes in the water contact angles under ultra-violet (UV) irradiation. The results revealed that the layered TiO₂/ITO films possessed a dissipated rate of 30% when they were stored in the dark for 12 h. This result shows that the layered TiO₂/ITO films acted as “electron pools” with an inherent energy storage capability. This unique property is attributable to the rougher surface and nearly porosity-free columnar structure, which is responsible for increased UV energy absorption and loss-free hole or electron transportation.     

Influence of the sputtering system''s vacuum level on the properties of indium tin oxide films

The influence of the chamber residual pressure level in the radio frequency magnetron sputtering process on the electrical, optical and structural properties of indium thin oxide (ITO) is investigated. Several ITO films were deposited at various residual pressure levels on Corning glass using In₂O₃:SnO₂ target in argon atmosphere and without the addition of oxygen partial pressure. It is found that a very good vacuum is associated to metallic films and results in less transparent ITO films, with some powder formation on the surface. On the contrary highly transparent and conducting films are produced at a higher residual pressure. The best deposition conditions are addressed for ITO films as transparent conducting oxide layers in silicon heterojunction solar cells. Using the optimal vacuum level for ITO fabrication, a maximum short circuit current of 36.6 mA/cm² and a fill-factor of 0.78 are obtained for solar cells on textured substrates with a device conversion efficiency of 16.2%.     

Pulsed laser deposition of indium tin oxide films on flexible polyethylene naphthalate display substrates at room temperature

Pulsed laser deposition was used to deposit high-quality indium tin oxide (ITO) thin solid films on polyethylene napthalate (PEN) flexible display substrates. The electrical, optical, microstructural, mechanical and adhesive properties of the functional thin layer were investigated as a function of a narrow range of background oxygen gas pressure at room temperature, which is the most desirable thermal condition for growing transparent conducting oxides on flexible display polymer substrates. ITO films (240 ± 35 nm thick) deposited on PEN at room temperature in the range of 0.33 to 2.66 Pa background oxygen pressure are observed to exhibit low electrical resistivity (~ 10^− 4 Ω cm) and high optical transmission (~ 90%). Electromechanical uniaxial tensile testing, of the hybrid thin structures, results in crack onset nominal strains of around 2%. The ITO surface adhesion reaches a maximum at 1.33 Pa deposition pressure.