Band Gap Tuning of DC Reactively Sputtered ZnON Thin Films

2023/02/16 by Kiran Jose, J. G. Anjana, Jose, Kiran +5
Materials Science · Engineering · #ZnO doping and properties #Ga2O3 and related materials #Gas Sensing Nanomaterials and Sensors

paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2302.08201

Abstract

Zinc oxynitride (ZnO_xN_y) has recently emerged as a highly promising band gap-tunable semiconductor material for optoelectronic applications. In this study, a novel DC reactive sputtering protocol was developed to fabricate ZnO_xN_y films with varying elemental concentrations, by precisely controlling the working pressure. The band gap was rigorously analyzed using UV-Visible spectroscopy, which was complemented by EDAX spectroscopy to determine the variations in the elemental composition. The correlation between the microstructure and band gap was investigated through the application of AFM, XRD, and Raman spectroscopy, while the Urbach theorem was used to evaluate the defect states. This study revealed the existence of intermediate structures formed during the tuning of the band gap, which can have important implications for future research aimed at developing heterostructures and 2D superlattices for photonics applications.

Related

• Composition dependent band offsets of ZnO and its ternary alloys
• High electron mobility single-crystalline ZnSnN2 on ZnO (0001) substrates
• Photonic Characterization of Oxygen and Air-Annealed Zn3N2 Thin Films
• ZnO Devices and Applications: A Review of Current Status and Future Prospects
• Strain-tunable direct band gap of ZnO monolayer in graphene-like honeycomb structure