Preparation and properties of RF sputtered indium-tin oxide thin films for applications as heat mirrors in photothermal solar energy conversion

In the present research, in order to deposit indium-tin oxide (ITO) thin films the method of RF reactive sputtering was used. Sputtering of two types indium-tin targets in the presence of oxygen as reactive gas was made. The technological parameters were optimized to obtain films with good quality on different substrates. The films' microstructure was studied by TEM and SAED. To identify the optical properties of the films the methods of infrared spectrometry and laser ellipsometry were used. UV-VIS spectrophotometry showed the high visible transmittance of the RF sputtered ITO films. Heating of the substrates during the films sputtering and their post deposition thermal treatment also were studied. The ultimate goal of the present research activities was to develop new technological processes leading to low-cost, highly effective optical coatings for application in photo thermal solar energy conversion and utilization.