Investigation of sol-gel yttrium doped ZnO thin films: structural and optical properties

Nanostructured metal oxide films are extensively studied due to their numerous applications such as optoelectronic devices, sensors. In this work, we report the Y-Zn-O nanostructured films prepared by sol-gel technology from sols with different concentration of yttrium precursor, followed by post-annealing treatment. The Y doped ZnO thin films have been deposited on Si and quartz substrates by spin coating method, then treated at temperatures ranging from 300-800 degrees C. XRD analysis reveals modification of the film structure and phases in the doped ZnO films.