Application of argon atmospheric cold plasma for indium tin oxide (ITO) based diodes

Transparent Conductive Oxide (TCO) layers due to transparency, high conductivity and hole injection capability have attracted a lot of attention. One of these layers is Indium Tin Oxide (ITO). ITO due to low resistance, transparency in the visible spectrum and its proper work function is widely used in the manufacture of organic light emitting diodes and solar cells. One way for improving the ITO surface is plasma treatment. In this paper, changes in surface morphology, by applying argon atmospheric pressure cold plasma, was studied through Atomic Force Microscopic (AFM) image analysis and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis. FTIR analysis showed functional groups were not added or removed, but chemical bond angle and bonds strength on the surface were changed and also AFM images showed that surface roughness was increased. These factors lead to the production of diodes with enhanced Ohmic contact and injection mechanism which are more appropriate in industrial applications.