Synthesis of In 2 O 3 Thin Films from Indium Thin Film by Hot-Water Oxidation Method

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dium oxide (In2O3) is a potential material for use in solar cells, for ultraviolet lasers, and in sensor applications.[1] In thin-film form, their wide ranges of applications include transparent windows in liquid crystal displays, antireflection coatings,[2] and optoelectronic and electrochromic devices[3] have shown remarkable prospects in the field of upcoming nanoelectronic building blocks and nanosensors. The observance of both high optical transmittance and high electrical conductivity simultaneously in indium oxide makes it a suitable transparent conducting oxide material for many device developments.[4] The functional properties of these oxides are, to a large extent, controlled by the presence of native point defects and impurities. Several deposition techniques have been used for the deposition of In2O3 films including chemical vapor deposition,[5] radio-frequency (RF) and direct current sputtering,[6] sol–gel,[7] spray pyrolysis,[8] etc. In addition, the oxidation method has the virtues of simplicity, efficiency, and low cost, and most commonly it is used for the synthesis of oxide nanostructures. Lee et al.[9] prepared In2O3 thin film by high-temperature (773 K to 1173 K [500 C to 900 C]) oxidation of In thin film. Damodara et al.[10] and A.K. Bal et al.[11] have also prepared and characterized In2O3 films obtained from oxidation of indium (In) films. Qiu et al.[12] have SUBRAMANI SHANMUGAN, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, and DEVARAJAN MUTHARASU, Associate Professor, are with theNano Optoelectronics Research Laboratory, School of Physics, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), 11800 Minden, Pulau Penang, Malaysia. Contact e-mail: [email protected] Manuscript submitted August 15, 2011. Article published online November 30, 2011 6—VOLUME 43A, JANUARY 2012

discovered and reported on the synthesis of crystalline ZnO film by direct reaction of ultrapure water and metallic Zn film. In this study, an attempt has been made to convert the In film into In2O3 by a simple oxidation method by using ultrapure hot water. The structural and optical properties of the processed film are reported in this article. Indium (In) films were deposited on soda lime glass substrates in an Ar atmosphere at ambient temperature by RF magnetron sputtering (Auto 500; Edwards Limited, Tewksbury, MA). Pure In (99.999 pct) and high-purity argon gas were used as the sputtering target and the work gas, respectively. The base pressure of the chamber was maintained at ~2 9 10 7 torr (26.66 lPa). During the deposition, a gas flow rate of 14 sccm and a gas pressure (PAr) of 1.4 9 10 2 torr (18.66 9 105 lPa) were employed. An RF power of 40 W was used for all In coatings. To obtain a uniform thickness, a rotary drive system has been used and 25 rpm was fixed for all the In film coatings. The sputtering duration was adjusted to yield In thicknesses of approximately 100 nm. All indium films were coated at 0.09 nm seconds 1. Ultrapure hot-water treatment was performed at 368 K (95 C), using a magnetic stirrer (resistivity more than 18.2 MX cm) for the specimen coated

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