Promising novel transparent conductive F-doped ZnSnO3 thin films for optoelectronic applications

In this article, ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 thin films were successfully deposited via the spray pyrolysis approach at a substrate temperature of 350 degrees C. The structural properties of the ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 thin films showed that the as-prepared films are polycrystalline with a rhombohedral structure. In the same line, it is observed that the surface examination shows that the ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 thin films have a uniform and homogenous surface. The EDX results verified that the ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 samples were formed with a respect ratio that was nearly identical to that of the ingots. The optical analysis of the ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 thin films demonstrated that, as the fluorine content was raised, the direct optical band gap of the ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 thin films was observed to drop, whereas the Urbach energy and absorption coefficient exhibited the opposite behavior. Furthermore, the ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 films have revealed a wide energy gap that drops from 3.42 to 2.97 eV via raising the F content. Moreover, the ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 samples have presented high values of nonlinear optical parameters, which were improved by raising the F content. Also, the ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 films exhibited high optical, electrical, and thermal conductivities as compared with ITO films. Furthermore, the increase in the fluorine doping concentration produces an improvement in the figure merit of these films, while the sheet resistance decreases. The obtained results refer to the formation of a new transparent conductive layer suitable for optoelectronic applications.

Automated summary

In this article, ZnSnO3 and F-doped ZnSnO3 thin films were successfully deposited via spray pyrolysis at 350 degrees C. The films exhibited a polycrystalline rhombohedral structure and a uniform surface. The optical analysis showed that increasing the fluorine content led to a decrease in the direct optical band gap of the films.