Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 168-173 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | THIN SOLID FILMS |
| Volume | 556 |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Apr 2014 |
Abstract
Thin films of indium tin oxide (ITO) have gained substantial interest due to their optical and electrical properties. Since ITO is an expensive material and indium is a rare element, considerable attempts have been made to replace it by, e.g., aluminum-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Al). The production of ZnO:Al is less cost-intensive, especially if the sol-gel technique is applied, while its properties are comparable to those of ITO. In this study, we demonstrate that the electrical properties of ZnO:Al thin films can be improved considerably by the addition of small amounts of ultrapure water to the dip coating solution during the preparation. The lowest resistivity obtained with a film prepared from a sol containing 0.2 M water is 2.8·10 -3Ωcm. Optical modeling thus indicates an improvement of the free carrier mobility of films prepared from sols in the presence of additional water. The films prepared have an average thickness of 340 nm and a solar transmittance above 85% after annealing in a forming gas atmosphere. Clearly, the addition of water to the sol has a positive impact on the resistivity of the final ZnO:Al thin film. We suggest the observed increase of the free carrier mobility to be due to an improved electron transfer at the grain boundaries between the spherical nanoparticles.
Keywords
- Chemical solution deposition, Forming gas, Free carrier mobility, Hydrolysis, Resistivity, Sol-gel, ZnO:Al
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Materials Science(all)
- Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
- Physics and Astronomy(all)
- Surfaces and Interfaces
- Materials Science(all)
- Surfaces, Coatings and Films
- Materials Science(all)
- Metals and Alloys
- Materials Science(all)
- Materials Chemistry
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In: THIN SOLID FILMS, Vol. 556, 01.04.2014, p. 168-173.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Aluminum-doped zinc oxide sol-gel thin films: Influence of the sol's water content on the resistivity
AU - Nehmann, J.B.
AU - Ehrmann, N.
AU - Reineke-Koch, R.
AU - Bahnemann, D.W.
N1 - Copyright: Copyright 2014 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2014/4/1
Y1 - 2014/4/1
N2 - Thin films of indium tin oxide (ITO) have gained substantial interest due to their optical and electrical properties. Since ITO is an expensive material and indium is a rare element, considerable attempts have been made to replace it by, e.g., aluminum-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Al). The production of ZnO:Al is less cost-intensive, especially if the sol-gel technique is applied, while its properties are comparable to those of ITO. In this study, we demonstrate that the electrical properties of ZnO:Al thin films can be improved considerably by the addition of small amounts of ultrapure water to the dip coating solution during the preparation. The lowest resistivity obtained with a film prepared from a sol containing 0.2 M water is 2.8·10 -3Ωcm. Optical modeling thus indicates an improvement of the free carrier mobility of films prepared from sols in the presence of additional water. The films prepared have an average thickness of 340 nm and a solar transmittance above 85% after annealing in a forming gas atmosphere. Clearly, the addition of water to the sol has a positive impact on the resistivity of the final ZnO:Al thin film. We suggest the observed increase of the free carrier mobility to be due to an improved electron transfer at the grain boundaries between the spherical nanoparticles.
AB - Thin films of indium tin oxide (ITO) have gained substantial interest due to their optical and electrical properties. Since ITO is an expensive material and indium is a rare element, considerable attempts have been made to replace it by, e.g., aluminum-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Al). The production of ZnO:Al is less cost-intensive, especially if the sol-gel technique is applied, while its properties are comparable to those of ITO. In this study, we demonstrate that the electrical properties of ZnO:Al thin films can be improved considerably by the addition of small amounts of ultrapure water to the dip coating solution during the preparation. The lowest resistivity obtained with a film prepared from a sol containing 0.2 M water is 2.8·10 -3Ωcm. Optical modeling thus indicates an improvement of the free carrier mobility of films prepared from sols in the presence of additional water. The films prepared have an average thickness of 340 nm and a solar transmittance above 85% after annealing in a forming gas atmosphere. Clearly, the addition of water to the sol has a positive impact on the resistivity of the final ZnO:Al thin film. We suggest the observed increase of the free carrier mobility to be due to an improved electron transfer at the grain boundaries between the spherical nanoparticles.
KW - Chemical solution deposition
KW - Forming gas
KW - Free carrier mobility
KW - Hydrolysis
KW - Resistivity
KW - Sol-gel
KW - ZnO:Al
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84896404227&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.tsf.2014.01.052
DO - 10.1016/j.tsf.2014.01.052
M3 - Article
VL - 556
SP - 168
EP - 173
JO - THIN SOLID FILMS
JF - THIN SOLID FILMS
SN - 0040-6090
ER -