Effect of oxygen partial pressure and transparent substrates on the structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films and their performance in energy harvesters

Yan-ping Xia; Pei-hong Wang; Shi-wei Shi; Gang He; Miao Zhang; Jian-guo L&#252;; Zhao-qi Sun

doi:10.1007/s12613-017-1450-1

Volume 24 Issue 6

Jun. 2017

Turn off MathJax

Article Contents

Abstract

References

International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials > 2017 > 24(6): 675-680. > DOI: 10.1007/s12613-017-1450-1

Yan-ping Xia, Pei-hong Wang, Shi-wei Shi, Gang He, Miao Zhang, Jian-guo Lü, and Zhao-qi Sun, Effect of oxygen partial pressure and transparent substrates on the structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films and their performance in energy harvesters, Int. J. Miner. Metall. Mater., 24(2017), No. 6, pp.675-680. https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12613-017-1450-1

Cite this article as:

PDF (1335 KB)

Research Article

Effect of oxygen partial pressure and transparent substrates on the structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films and their performance in energy harvesters

Yan-ping Xia¹⁾,
Pei-hong Wang^1), ,,
Shi-wei Shi¹⁾,
Gang He¹⁾,
Miao Zhang¹⁾,
Jian-guo Lü²⁾ and
Zhao-qi Sun¹⁾

Author Affilications

School of Physics & Materials Science, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, China
School of Electronic & Information Engineering, Hefei Normal University, Hefei 230601, China

Funds:

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (61671017), Anhui Provincial Natural Science Foundation (1508085ME72), and the Provincial Natural Science Foundation of Anhui Higher Education Institution (KJ2016A787).

Received: 07 October 2016; Revised: 09 January 2017; Accepted: 10 January 2017;

Graphical Abstract

Abstract

Abstract

Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films were deposited onto different substrates-tin-doped indium oxide (ITO)/glass, ITO/polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), ITO/polyethylene terephthalate (PET)-by the radio-frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering method. The effect of various O₂/(Ar+O₂) gas flow ratios (0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, and 0.6) was studied in detail. ZnO layers deposited onto ITO/PEN and ITO/PET substrates exhibited a stronger c-axis preferred orientation along the (0002) direction compared to ZnO deposited onto ITO/glass. The transmittance spectra of ZnO films showed that the maximum transmittances of ZnO films deposited onto ITO/glass, ITO/PEN, and ITO/PET substrates were 89.2%, 65.0%, and 77.8%, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of the film surfaces indicated that the grain was uniform. The cross-sectional SEM images showed that the ZnO films were columnar structures whose c-axis was perpendicular to the film surface. The test results for a fabricated ZnO thin film based energy harvester showed that its output voltage increased with increasing acceleration of external vibration.
- zinc oxide,
- thin films,
- RF sputtering,
- gas flow ratio,
- piezoelectricity,
- energy harvesting

FullText(HTML)

References (25)

References

L. Li, L. Fang, X.M. Chen, J. Liu, F.F. Yang, Q.J. Li, G.B. Liu, and S.J. Feng, Influence of oxygen argon ratio on the structural, electrical, optical and thermoelectrical properties of Al-doped ZnO thin films, Phys. E, 41(2008), No. 1, p. 169.

M. Sibinski, K. Znajdek, S. Walczak, M. Słoma, M. Górski, and A. Cenian, Comparison of ZnO:Al, ITO and carbon nanotube transparent conductive layers in flexible solar cells applications, Mater. Sci. Eng. B, 177(2012), No. 15, p. 1292.

S. Logothetidis, A. Laskarakis, S. Kassavetis, S. Lousinian, C. Gravalidis, and G. Kiriakidis, Optical and structural properties of ZnO for transparent electronics, Thin Solid Films, 516(2008), No. 7, p. 1345.

C.T. Pana, Z.H. Liu, Y.C. Chen, and C.F. Liu, Design and fabrication of flexible piezo-microgenerator by depositing ZnO thin films on PET substrates, Sens. Actuators A, 159(2010), No. 1, p. 96.

P.H. Wang and H.J. Du, ZnO thin film piezoelectric MEMS vibration energy harvesters with two piezoelectric elements for higher output performance, Rev. Sci. Instrum., 86(2015), No. 7, p. 075002.

H.C. Liu, C.J. Tay, C.G. Quan, T. Kobayashi, and C. Lee, Piezoelectric MEMS energy harvester for low-frequency vibrations with wideband operation range and steadily increased output power, J. Microelectromech. Syst., 20(2011), No. 5, p. 1131.

G. Chen, C. Song, and F. Pan, Magnetoresistive sensors with hybrid Co/insulator/ZnO:Co junctions, Int. J. Miner. Metall. Mater., 20(2013), No. 2, p. 160.

P.H. Wang, H.J. Du, S.N. Shen, M.S. Zhang, and B. Liu, Deposition, characterization and optimization of zinc oxide thin film for piezoelectric cantilevers, Appl. Surf. Sci., 258(2012), No. 24, p. 9510.

R. Elfrink, T.M. Kamel, M. Goedbloed, S. Matova, D. Hohlfeld, Y. van Andel, and R. van Schaijk, Vibration energy harvesting with aluminum nitride-based piezoelectric devices, J. Micromech. Microeng., 19(2009), No. 9.

P. Janphuang, R. Lockhart, N. Uffer, D. Briand, and N.F. De Rooji, Vibrational piezoelectric energy harvesters based on thinned bulk PZT sheets fabricated at the wafer level, Sens. Actuators A, 210(2014), No. 1, p. 1.

P.H. Wang, H.J. Du, S.N. Shen, M.S. Zhang, and B. Liu, Preparation and characterization of ZnO microcantilever for nanoactuation, Nanoscale Res. Lett., 7(2012), article No. 176.

T. Xu, G.Y. Wu, G.B. Zhang, and Y.L. Hao, The compatibility of ZnO piezoelectric film with micromachining process, Sens. Actuators A, 104(2003), No. 1, p. 61.

Y. Yoshino, K. Inoue, M. Takeuchi, T. Makino, Y. Katayama, and T. Hata, Effect of substrate surface morphology and interface microstructure in ZnO thin films formed on various substrates, Vacuum, 59(2000), No. 2-3, p. 403.

K.H. Lee, N.I. Cho, E.J. Yun, and H.G. Nam, Characterization of ZnO thin films grown on various substrates by RF magnetron sputtering, Appl. Surf. Sci., 256(2010), No. 13, p. 4241.

X.Q. Meng, C.T. Yang, W.J. Fu, and J. Wan, Preparation and electrical properties of ZnO/PZT films by radio frequency reactive magnetron sputtering, Mater. Lett., 83(2012), No. 23, p. 179.

S. Singh, R.S. Srinivasa, and S.S. Major, Effect of substrate temperature on the structure and optical properties of ZnO thin films deposited by reactive RF magnetron sputtering, Thin Solid Films, 515(2007), No. 24, p. 8718.

W. Gao and Z.W. Li, ZnO thin films produced by magnetron sputtering, Ceram. Int., 30(2004), No. 7, p. 1155.

X.L. Zhang, K.N. Hui, K.S. Hui, and J. Singh, Structural and optical characterization of high-quality ZnO thin films deposited by reactive RF magnetron sputtering, Mater. Res. Bull., 48(2013), No. 3, p. 1093.

B. Zhou, A.V. Rogachev, Z.B. Liu, D.G. Piliptsou, H.J. Ji, and X.H. Jiang, Effects of oxygen/argon ratio and annealing on structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films, Appl. Surf. Sci., 258(2012), No. 15, p. 5759.

H.D. Kim, M.J. Yun, and S. Kim, All ITO-based transparent resistive switching random access memory using oxygen doping method, J. Alloys Compd., 653(2015), p. 534.

S. Joshi, M.M. Nayak, and K. Rajanna, Effect of post-deposition annealing on transverse piezoelectric coefficient and vibration sensing performance of ZnO thin films, Appl. Surf. Sci., 296(2014), No. 8, p. 169.

Y. Igasaki and H. Kanma, Argon gas pressure dependence of the properties of transparent conducting ZnO:Al films deposited on glass substrates, Appl. Surf. Sci., 169-170(2001), No. 2, p. 508.

L.W. Wang, Z. Xu, F.J. Zhang, S.L. Zhao, and L.F. Lu, Structure, optical, and magnetic properties of Mn-doped ZnO films prepared by sputtering, Int. J. Miner. Metall. Mater., 17(2010), No. 4, p. 475.

J. Zhou, X.L. He, W.B. Wang, Q. Zhu, W.P. Xuan, H. Jin, S.R. Dong, M. De Wang, and J.K. Luo, Transparent surface acoustic wave devices on ZnO/glass using Al-doped ZnO as the electrode, IEEE Electron Device Lett., 34(2013), No. 10, p. 1319.

Y.P. Xia, P.H. Wang, S.W. Shi, Y.M. Liu, G. He, M. Zhang, J.G. Lü, and Z.Q. Sun, Deposition and characterization of AZO thin films on flexible glass substrates using DC magnetron sputtering technique, Ceram. Int., 43(2016), No. 5, p. 4536.

[1]	Xiao-zhou Zhang, Yan-ping Xia, Xing Liu, Yi-ming Zhong, Hai-bo Zhao, Pei-hong Wang. Effect of annealing temperature on the microstructure and optoelectrical properties of ZnO thin films and their application in self-powered accelerometers [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2019, 26(9): 1186-1193. DOI: 10.1007/s12613-019-1828-3
[2]	Liang-xian Chen, Sheng Liu, Cheng-ming Li, Yi-chao Wang, Jin-long Liu, Jun-jun Wei. Enhanced deposition of ZnO films by Li doping using radio frequency reactive magnetron sputtering [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2015, 22(10): 1108-1114. DOI: 10.1007/s12613-015-1174-z
[3]	Shakil Khan, A. Mahmood, A. Shah, Qaiser Raza, Muhammad Asim Rasheed, Ishaq Ahmad. Structural and optical analysis of Cr₂N thin films prepared by DC magnetron sputtering [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2015, 22(2): 197-202. DOI: 10.1007/s12613-015-1061-7
[4]	Arvind Kumar, S. K. Mishra. Dielectric, piezoelectric, and ferroelectric properties of lanthanum-modified PZTFN ceramics [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2014, 21(10): 1019-1027. DOI: 10.1007/s12613-014-1003-9
[5]	Arvind Kumar, S. K. Mishra. Effects of Sr²⁺ substitution on the structural, dielectric, and piezoelectric properties of PZT-PMN ceramics [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2014, 21(2): 175-180. DOI: 10.1007/s12613-014-0882-0
[6]	Jin-long Li, Zhong Yu, Ke Sun, Xiao-na Jiang, Zhong-wen Lan. Structural and magnetic properties of ZnFe₂O₄ films deposited by low sputtering power [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2012, 19(10): 964-968. DOI: 10.1007/s12613-012-0655-6
[7]	Hai-tao Li, Bo-ping Zhang, Wei-gang Yang, Nan Ma. Influence of sintering temperature on the structure and piezoelectric properties of ZnO-modified (Li, Na, K)NbO₃ lead-free ceramics [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2012, 19(9): 843-848. DOI: 10.1007/s12613-012-0637-8
[8]	Wei Shao, Ruixin Ma, Bin Liu. Fabrication and properties of ZAO powder,sputtering target materials and the related films [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2006, 13(4): 346-349. DOI: 10.1016/S1005-8850(06)60071-6
[9]	Xiangjun Liu, Xuchang Xu, Wurong Zhang. Numerical simulation of dense particle-gas two-phase flow using the minimal potential energy principle [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2006, 13(4): 301-307. DOI: 10.1016/S1005-8850(06)60063-7
[10]	Jianhua Liu, Jiayun Zhang. Assessment of the apparent activation energies for gas/solid reactions-carbonate decomposition [J]. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2003, 10(2): 25-29.

Cited By

Cited by

Periodical cited type(6)

1.	Jiuyao Du, Mengqi Zhang, Jianjun Tian. Controlled crystal orientation of two-dimensional Ruddlesden—Popper halide perovskite films for solar cells. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials, 2022, 29(1): 49. DOI:10.1007/s12613-021-2341-z
2.	Praloy Mondal, Shravan K. Appani, D. S. Sutar, et al. Effect of oxygen partial pressure on the behavior of Ga-doped ZnO/p-Si heterojunction diodes fabricated by reactive sputtering. Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics, 2021, 32(4): 4248. DOI:10.1007/s10854-020-05169-7
3.	Jian Zhang, Yuting Jiang, Jiaxin Zhang, et al. Preparation of Pd/GO/ITO composite electrode and degradation of 2, 4-chlorophene. Journal of Materials Science, 2020, 55(4): 1525. DOI:10.1007/s10853-019-04108-0
4.	Xiaozhou Zhang, Peihong Wang, Xing Liu, et al. Effect of post-annealing on microstructure and piezoelectric properties of ZnO thin film for triangular shaped vibration energy harvester. Surface and Coatings Technology, 2019, 361: 123. DOI:10.1016/j.surfcoat.2019.01.036
5.	Xiao-zhou Zhang, Yan-ping Xia, Xing Liu, et al. Effect of annealing temperature on the microstructure and optoelectrical properties of ZnO thin films and their application in self-powered accelerometers. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy, and Materials, 2019, 26(9): 1186. DOI:10.1007/s12613-019-1828-3
6.	Huan-yu Zhang, Rui Li, Wen-wu Liu, et al. Research progress in lead-less or lead-free three-dimensional perovskite absorber materials for solar cells. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy, and Materials, 2019, 26(4): 387. DOI:10.1007/s12613-019-1748-2