Abstract
The tailoring of optical properties of ZnO films caused by the evolution of the morphology is a subject of great concern. In this
research, Al, Fe and Cl (Al-Fe-Cl) incorporated ZnO films were deposited by the sol-gel technique and the annealing
time-dependent evolution of morphology and optical properties were analyzed in detail. The results show that pyramid-like
grains are formed on the film surface after annealing treatment. When the annealing time exceeds 1 h, the pyramid-like
grains on the film surface begin to aggregate. With the further increase of the annealing time, the aggregation of the
pyramid-like grains becomes more obvious. In addition, the increase of annealing time greatly changes the luminescence
behavior of ZnO thin films.
Keywords
ZnO films, Sol-gel method, UV emission, Annealing time, Surface aggregation of grains.
Citation
ZHEN TIAN, LINHUA XU, AOXIN ZANG, WENYANG MA, Annealing time-dependent evolution of morphology and luminescence behavior of zinc oxide thin films, Optoelectronics and Advanced Materials - Rapid Communications, 17, 5-6, May-June 2023, pp.233-240 (2023).
Submitted at: Dec. 26, 2022
Accepted at: June 6, 2023