Mesoporous indium tin oxide (ITO) films

We have developed a route to mesostructured indium tin oxide (ITO) films. The films, with the In/Sn atomic ratio of 9: 1, were prepared using cetyltrimethylammonium (CTAB) as templating agent. Substrates of silicon and quartz and borosilicate glasses were spin-coated with an ethanol-CTAB solution of indium and tin chlorides, followed by heat treatment in air. Characterization was performed using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and infrared spectroscopy. The CTAB template could be removed with retention of the mesostructure, by heat treatment at 300 degrees C, yielding a material with pore walls of single-phase cubic bixbyite structure and a mesoporous d-spacing of 4.4 nm. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.