Effect of zinc content on the refractive index of Co-sputtered Zn-doped ITO films

In this study, we investigated the possibility of using Zn-doped ITO film as an alternative material for conventional SiO2 waveguides used in optical communication. The Zn-doped ITO films were deposited on quartz substrates using a combinatorial sputtering system, which yielded composition spread Zn-In-Sn-O (ZITO) films by co-sputtering two targets of ITO and ZnO. The Zn-doped ITO films deposited at room temperature exhibited an amorphous phase in the Zn content [Zn/(Zn+In+Sn)] range of 39-54 at%. The Zn-doped ITO films deposited at low oxygen partial pressure showed resistivity below 10(-3) ohms cm and optical transmittance of approximately 85% at 550 nm. The refractive index calculated by the Swanepoel method was found to be dependent on the Zn content in the Zn-doped ITO films. The calculated bending loss from the refractive index indicated that Zn-doped ITO could be utilized as a new waveguide material for various optical devices, such as optical splitters, wavelength division multiplexers (WDMs), optical modulators, and optical switches.     

Transparent conducting ZnO : Al films on different organic substrates deposited by r.f. sputtering

1. IntroductionThansparellt conducting zinc oxide films have beenextensively studied in recede years, because of theirlow material cost, relatively low deposition temperature and stability in hydrogen plasma compared withITO and SnOZ films[1]. These adVatages are of considerable interest for electrrvoptical conversion device.Compared with undoped ZnO, Al-doped ZnO filmshave lobed resistivity and better stability. nansparellt conducting films deposited on organic substrateshave many lments…     

Characteristics of Al-doped ZnO films grown by atomic layer deposition for silicon nanowire photovoltaic device

We report the structural, electrical, and optical characteristics of Al-doped ZnO (ZnO:Al) films deposited on glass by atomic layer deposition (ALD) with various Al2O3 film contents for use as transparent electrodes. Unlike films fabricated by a sputtering method, the diffraction peak position of the films deposited by ALD progressively moved to a higher angle with increasing Al2O3 film content. This indicates that Zn sites were effectively replaced by Al, due to layer-by-layer growth mechanism of ALD process which is based on alternate self-limiting surface chemical reactions. By adjusting the Al2O3 film content, a ZnO:Al film with low electrical resistivity (9.84 x 10(-4) Omega cm) was obtained at an Al2O3 film content of 3.17%, where the Al concentration, carrier mobility, optical transmittance, and bandgap energy were 2.8 wt%, 11.20 cm2 V(-1) s(-1), 94.23%, and 3.6 eV, respectively. Moreover, the estimated figure of merit value of our best sample was 8.2 m7Omega(-1). These results suggest that ZnO:Al films deposited by ALD could be useful for electronic devices in which especially require 3-dimensional conformal deposition of the transparent electrode and surface passivation.     

室温下射频磁控溅射制备ZnO:Al透明导电薄膜及其性能研究

采用射频磁控溅射技术,在室温下,以ZnO:Al2O3(2%Al2O3(质量比))为靶材,在石英玻璃基底上,采用不同工艺条件制备了ZnO:Al(AZO)薄膜。使用扫描电子显微镜观察了薄膜的表面形貌,X射线衍射分析了薄膜的结构,四探针测量仪得到薄膜的表面电阻,轮廓仪测量了薄膜厚度,并计算了电阻率,最后采用分光光度计测量了薄膜的透过率;研究了溅射功率、溅射气压与薄膜厚度对薄膜电阻率及透过率的影响。结果表明:所制备的AZO薄膜具有(002)择优取向,并且发现薄膜厚度对薄膜的光电性能有明显影响,溅射气压和溅射功率对薄膜电学性能有较大影响,但是对薄膜透过率影响不大。当功率为1kW、溅射气压0.052Pa、AZO薄膜厚度为250nm时,其电阻率为8.38×10-4Ω·cm,波长在550nm处透过率为89%,接近基底的本底透过率92%。当薄膜厚度为1125 nm时薄膜的电阻率降至最低(6.16×10-4Ω·cm)。     

Structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films prepared by laser ablation using target of ZnO powder mixture with glue

ZnO thin films were deposited on ITO/glass substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) using two different kinds of targets. One of the targets was made of pure ZnO powder and the other one consisted of a mixture of ZnO powder with cyanoacrylate glue. The structural and morphological properties of the films obtained using both targets were compared, in order to determine which one produces samples with properties more suitable for their use as buffer and antireflective layer in CdTe-based solar cells, also different heterostructures were deposited to study the optical properties of the obtained thin films and their utility in the applications mentioned before. The films deposited with the mixture powder target were polycrystalline with preferential orientations in the planes (100) and (101) with a high transmittance in the range of 70–90% in the 540–850 nm wavelength region and showed a high resistivity of \({\sim }1.30 \times 10^{2} \,\Omega \hbox { cm}^{-1}\), such properties are considered to be appropriate for thin films that are wanted to be used as a buffer and antireflective layer in CdTe solar cells.     

Properties of indium tin oxide films deposited on unheated polymer substrates by ion beam assisted deposition

The optical, electrical and mechanical properties of indium tin oxide (ITO) films prepared on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates by ion beam assisted deposition at room temperature were investigated. The properties of ITO films can be improved by introducing a buffer layer of silicon dioxide (SiO₂) between the ITO film and the PET substrate. ITO films deposited on SiO₂-coated PET have better crystallinity, lower electrical resistivity, and improved resistance stability under bending than those deposited on bare PET. The average transmittance and the resistivity of ITO films deposited on SiO₂-coated PET are 85% and 0.90 × 10^− 3 Ω cm, respectively, and when the films are bent, the resistance remains almost constant until a bending radius of 1 cm and it increases slowly under a given bending radius with an increase of the bending cycles. The improved resistance stability of ITO films deposited on SiO₂-coated PET is mainly attributed to the perfect adhesion of ITO films induced by the SiO₂ buffer layer.     

Al2O3/TiO2 multilayer passivation layers grown at low temperature for flexible organic devices

In this study, the permeability of passivation layers consisting of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) and titanium oxide (TiO2) was examined. The films were deposited on poly(ether sulfone) (PES) substrates via electron cyclotron resonance atomic layer deposition (ECR-ALD) at various deposition temperatures. The optimum plasma power and deposition temperature were investigated through measurements of the refractive index and packing density of the Al2O3 and TiO2 films. A buffer layer/multilayer structure was proposed in this study to improve the passivation barrier performance. A low water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) of approximately 5 x 10(-3) g/m2 x day was achieved with two Al2O3/TiO2 stacks with thicknesses of 40 nm deposited at 80 degrees C. Based on the Arrhenius rate equation, the activation energy of water vapor transmission through different passivation structures was examined. The activation energies of Al2O3, Al2O3/TiO2, and two Al2O3/TiO2 stacks with thicknesses of 40 nm were 51.8, 63.9, and 74.7 kJ/mol, respectively.     

Effect of buffer layer on solution deposited ZnO films

ZnO films were prepared by solution deposition method on various substrates: bare glass, TiO₂-buffer-coated glass, ITO glass and ZnO-buffer-coated glass. PEG addition was used to further investigate the effect of the patterned ZnO buffer on the morphology of the films. The structural morphology was investigated by using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy analysis methods. The nature of the substrate was found to have effect on the morphology and crystal structure of the resultant films. All the films deposited on various substrates were c-oriented and the highest intensity of (002) diffraction peak appeared in the samples deposited on ZnO buffer. Addition of PEG to the buffer precursor affected the size distribution of ZnO grains on buffer layer, resulting in composite films with nano- and microcrystals which dispersed in each other. The homogeneous nucleation and heterogeneous nucleation on the two sides of the substrates were discussed based on the film morphology.     

Effects of substrate temperature on properties for transparent conducting ZnO: Al films on organic substrate deposited by r.f. sputtering

This paper presents the substrate temperature dependence of opto-electrical properties for transparent conducting Al-doped ZnO films prepared on polyisocyanate (PI) substrates by r.f. sputtering. Polycrystalline ZnO:Al films with good adherence to the substrates having a (002) preferred orientation have been obtained with resistivities in the range from 4.1 x 10(-3) to 5.3 x 10(-4) Ohm .cm, carrier densities more than 2.6 x 10(20) cm(-3) and Hall mobilities between 5.78 and 13.11 cm(2)/V/s for films. The average transmittance reaches 75% in the visible spectrum. The quality of obtained films depends on substrate temperature during film fabrication.     

Characteristics of ZnO films prepared by atomic layer deposition for transparent electronic devices

Recently, nanostructured zinc oxide (ZnO) for many different applications in micro- and opto-electronic devices has been studied intensively. However, its structural and electrical properties still require improvements for ZnO-based transparent electronics. In this study, we fabricated ZnO films (thicknesses from 30 to 70 nm) on glass substrates using atomic layer deposition (ALD) and investigated the film properties in relation with substrate temperatures. The processing window (thermal ALD window) of self-limiting growth was observed at 110-190 degrees C. In our thermal ALD window, the average growth rate of ZnO films was 0.26 nm/cycle, and the (002) orientation became dominant with increasing substrate temperatures. For all growth temperatures, ZnO films have shown n-type conductivity. At 170 degrees C, ZnO with good electrical properties of carrier concentration (1.3 x 10(19) cm(-3)), mobility (18 cm2/Vs), and resistivity (2.7 x 10(-2) omegacm) was successfully obtained.     

Effect of a zinc oxide,at the cathode interface,on the efficiency of inverted organic photovoltaic cells based on the CuPc/C<Subscript>60</Subscript> couple

The effect of ZnO buffer layer on the performances of inverted multilayers organic solar cells has been studied. ZnO:Al conductive films and insulating ZnO films deposited by spin coating have been probed. The ZnO buffer layer has been introduced between the ITO cathode and the Organic acceptor. The cells are based on the multilayer junctions bathocuproine/fullerene/copper phthalocyanine. The organic photovoltaic cells performances improvement depends of the ZnO layer introduced. ZnO:Al conductive layers decreases the potential barrier at the interface cathode/organic. This allows decreasing the series resistance which improves significantly the cell efficiency. Insulating ZnO increases only slightly the solar cells performance by increasing significantly the shunt resistance and therefore the open circuit voltage of the cells.     

Surface morphology of Al0.3Ga0.7N/Al2O3-high electron mobility transistor structure

We present surface properties of buffer films (AIN and GaN) and Al0.3Gao.zN/Al2O3-High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT) structures with/without AIN interlayer grown on High Temperature (HT)-AIN buffer/Al2O3 substrate and Al2O3 substrate. We have found that the GaN surface morphology is step-flow in character and the density of dislocations was about 10(8)-10(9) cm(-2). The AFM measurements also exhibited that the presence of atomic steps with large lateral step dimension and the surface of samples was smooth. The lateral step sizes are in the range of 100-250 nm. The typical rms values of HEMT structures were found as 0.27, 0.30, and 0.70 nm. HT-AIN buffer layer can have a significant impact on the surface morphology of Al0.3Ga0.7N/Al2O3-HEMT structures.     

Thickness of ITO thin film influences on fabricating ZnO nanorods applying for dye-sensitized solar cell

Background and purposeIn order to compare the substrates influence on the properties of ZnO films and nanostructures, in this paper, the ITO substrates with different thicknesses were investigated.MethodITO thin films of different thickness (200 nme500 nm) were deposited on glass substrates by DC sputtering, on which ZnO nanorods were fabricated from as-deposited ZnO films by reducing annealing method.ResultsIt was found that the structural and electrical properties of ITO films were significantly influenced by the ITO film thickness. The roughness of ITO films was increased with increase in thickness. The Hall mobility of ITO films was also increased with the increase of film thickness; in contrast, the resistivity was decreased. The highest Hall mobility of 29.2 cm²/V s and the lowest resistivity of 1.303 × 10⁻⁴ Ω cm were obtained from 500 nm-thick ITO film. The structural properties of ZnO nanorods were significantly influenced by the ITO film thickness. The density of ZnO nanorods gradually decreased with the increase in thickness of ITO film.ConclusionThe overall conversion efficiency of demonstrated dye-sensitized solar cell was 2.11% with a fill factor 0.526, indicating high potential to be used as photoanodes in dye-sensitized solar cell applications.     

Modification of optical and electrical properties of ITO using a thin Al capping layer

In this study, the work function, transmittance, and resistivity of indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films were successfully modified by depositing an Al capping layer on top of ITO with subsequent thermal annealing. The 5 nm thick Al layer was deposited by a conventional dc magnetron sputtering method and the layer was converted into an aluminum oxinitride by subjecting the sample to rapid thermal annealing (RTA) under a nitrogen atmosphere. The films exhibited a high transmittance of 86% on average within the visible wavelength region with an average resistivity value of 7.9 × 10^− 4 Ω cm. Heat-treating the Al/ITO films via RTA resulted in the decrease of the optical band gap from that of bare ITO. In addition, the films showed red-shift phenomena due to their decreased band gaps when the heat-treatment temperature was increased. The resultant electrical and optical characteristics can be explained by the formation of aluminum oxinitride on the surface of the ITO films. The work function of the heat-treated films increased by up to 0.26 eV from that of a bare ITO film. The increase of the work function predicts the reduction of the hole-injection barrier in organic light-emitting diode (OLED) devices and the eventual use of these films could provide much improved efficiency of devices.     

Effect of inserting a buffer layer on the characteristics of transparent conducting impurity-doped ZnO thin films prepared by dc magnetron sputtering

In transparent conducting impurity-doped ZnO thin films prepared on glass substrates by a dc magnetron sputtering (dc-MS) deposition, the obtainable lowest resistivity and the spatial resistivity distribution on the substrate surface were improved by a newly developed MS deposition method. The decrease of obtainable lowest resistivity as well as the improvement of spatial resistivity distribution on the substrate surface in Al- or Ga-doped ZnO (AZO or GZO) thin films were successfully achieved by inserting a very thin buffer layer, prepared using the same MS apparatus with the same target, between the thin film and the glass substrate. The deposition of the buffer layer required a more strongly oxidized target surface than possible to attain during a conventional dc-MS deposition. The optimal thickness of the buffer layer was found to be about 10 nm for both GZO and AZO thin films. The resistivity decrease is mainly attributed to an increase of Hall mobility rather than carrier concentration, resulting from an improvement of crystallinity coming from insertion of the buffer layer. Resistivities of 3 × 10^− 4 and 4 × 10^− 4Ω cm were obtained in 100 nm-thick-GZO and AZO thin films, respectively, incorporating a 10 nm-thick-buffer layer prepared at a substrate temperature around 200 °C.     

Preparation and optimization of epitaxial growth of transparent ZnO nanotip thin films by hydrothermal method

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanotip thin films were prepared on ZnO coated nanocrystalline ITO/glass substrates by hydrothermal method. In order to obtain the ZnO nanotip arrays with high aspect ratio, the experimental conditions were optimized. The scanning electron microscope images showed that the surface morphology of ZnO thin films could be easily manipulated by changing the seed layer thickness and growth time. The ZnO nanotip thin films were grown epitaxially on ZnO seed layer coated ITO/glass substrates. The surface morphology of ZnO thin films on ITO/glass substrate changed from nanorods with a flat-top end to nanotips as the growth time was increased from 3 to 15 h. The ZnO thin films prepared under these deposition conditions were highly oriented along (002) direction. The as-prepared sample (15 h) was annealed at different temperatures (30, 100, 150, and 270 degrees C). The surface morphologies of annealed ZnO thin films did not show any remarkable change and the best crystallinity was observed at 100 degrees C. The photoluminescence spectra showed that the near band edge emission shifted to shorter wavelength as the annealing temperature was increased from 30 to 270 degrees C, it was due to the intrinsic stress in the films. This was confirmed by X-ray diffraction analyses. NPB thin films were prepared on ITO/clay and ITO/glass substrates by thermal evaporation method. The electrical properties of Ag/NPB/ITO/Clay showed the Ohmic characteristics (J proportional V(1.0)). The J-V characteristic of Ag/NPB/PMMA/ZnO/ITO/Glass showed good rectification behaviour with a diode-ideality factor of 1.36.     

Structural and electrical characteristics of gallium tin oxide thin films prepared by electron cyclotron resonance-metal organic chemical vapor deposition

Gallium tin oxide composite (GTO) thin films were prepared by electron cyclotron resonance-metal organic chemical vapor deposition (ECR-MOCVD). The organometallics of tetramethlytin and trimethylgallium were used for precursors of gallium and tin, respectively. X-ray diffraction (XRD) characterization indicated that the gallium tin oxide composite thin films show the nanopolycrystalline of tetragonal rutile structure. Hall measurement indicated that the Ga/[O+Sn] mole ratio play an important role to determine the electrical properties of gallium tin composite oxide thin films. n-type conducting film obtained Ga/[O+Sn] mole ratio of 0.05 exhibited the lowest electrical resistivity of 1.21 x 10(-3) ohms cm. In our experimental range, the optimized carrier concentration of 3.71 x 10(18) cm(-3) was prepared at the Ga/[O+Sn] mole ratio of 0.35.     

Nitrogen-doped ZnO thin films grown on glass substrates by atomic layer deposition using NH3 as a doping source

Nitrogen-doped ZnO (ZnO:N) films were successfully grown on glass substrates by atomic layer deposition (ALD). NH3 was used as a doping source, and the substrate temperature was relatively low (90 approximately 210 degrees C). The main focus of the study was to report on the effect of the temperature on the electrical properties (e.g., carrier concentration, mobility, etc.) of the grown ZnO:N films. At all temperatures, the carrier was found to be n-type, and its electron concentration did not show much variation within the values between 3 x 10(16) and 6 x 10(16) cm-3; the mobility increased with the temperature (1 cm2/Vs at 110 degrees C, 5 cm2/Vs at 190 degrees C); and the resistivity decreased with the temperature (203 omegacm at 110 degrees C, 21 omegacm at 190 degrees C). The electrical properties are discussed in relation with the nitrogen concentration, crystallinity, crystal orientation, grain size, and surface morphology. The nitrogen concentration in the ZnO:N films was constant at all temperatures (approximately 2.5 atomic percent); the crystallinity and crystal orientation improved with the temperature; and the mean grain size increased with the temperature (13.2 nm at 110 degrees C, 35.3 nm at 190 degrees C). The results for the ZnO:N films were also compared with the results for the undoped ZnO films.     

Characterization of ITO/CdO/glass thin films evaporated by electron beam technique

Abstract

A thin buffer layer of cadmium oxide (CdO) was used to enhance the optical and electrical properties of indium tin oxide (ITO) films prepared by an electron-beam evaporation technique. The effects of the thickness and heat treatment of the CdO layer on the structural, optical and electrical properties of ITO films were carried out. It was found that the CdO layer with a thickness of 25 nm results in an optimum transmittance of 70% in the visible region and an optimum resistivity of 5.1×10^?3 Ω cm at room temperature. The effect of heat treatment on the CdO buffer layer with a thickness of 25 nm was considered to improve the optoelectronic properties of the formed ITO films. With increasing annealing temperature, the crystallinity of ITO films seemed to improve, enhancing some physical properties, such as film transmittance and conductivity. ITO films deposited onto a CdO buffer layer heated at 450 °C showed a maximum transmittance of 91% in the visible and near-infrared regions of the spectrum associated with the highest optical energy gap of 3.61 eV and electrical resistivity of 4.45×10^?4 Ω cm at room temperature. Other optical parameters, such as refractive index, extinction coefficient, dielectric constant, dispersion energy, single effective oscillator energy, packing density and free carrier concentration, were also studied.     

Effect of the [Al/Zn] ratio in the starting solution and deposition temperature on the physical properties of sprayed ZnO:Al thin films

Aluminum-doped zinc oxide thin films (ZnO:Al) were deposited on sodocalcic glass substrates by the chemical spray technique, using zinc acetate and aluminum pentanedionate as precursors. The effect of the [Al/Zn] ratio in the starting solution, as well as the substrate temperature, on the physical characteristic of ZnO:Al thin films was analyzed. We have found that the addition of Al to the starting solution decreases the electrical resistivity of the films until a minimum value, located between 2 and 3 at.%; a further increase in the [Al/Zn] ratio leads to an increase in the resistivity. A similar resistivity tendency with the substrate temperature was encountered, namely, as the substrate temperature is increased, a minimum value of around 475 °C in almost all the cases, was obtained. At higher deposition temperatures the film resistivity suffers an increase. After a vacuum-thermal treatment, performed at 400 °C for 1 h, the films showed a resistivity decrease about one order of magnitude, reaching a minimum value, for the films deposited at 475 °C, of 4.3 × 10^− 3 Ω cm.The film morphology is strongly affected by the [Al/Zn] ratio in the starting solution. X-ray analysis shows a (002) preferential growth in all the films. As the substrate temperature increases it is observed a slight increase in the transmittance as well as a shift in the band gap of the ZnO:Al thin films.