Accelerated optimization of transparent, amorphous zinc-tin-oxide thin films for optoelectronic applications
Source abstract
Abstract
In the last decade, transparent amorphous oxide semiconductors (TAOS) have become an essential component of many electronics, from ultra high resolution displays to solar cells. However, these disordered oxides typically rely on expensive component metals like indium to provide sufficient charge carrier conduction, and their optoelectronic properties are not as predictable and well-described as those of traditional, crystalline semiconductors. Herein we report on our comprehensive study of the amorphous zinc-tin-oxide (a-ZTO) system for use as an indium-free, n-type TAOS. Using a combination of high-throughput co-deposition growth, high resolution spectral mapping, and atomistic calculations, we explain the development of disorder-related subgap states in SnO2-like a-ZTO and optical bandgap reduction in ZnO-like a-ZTO. In addition, we report on a composition-induced electronic and structural transition in ZnO-like a-ZTO resulting in an exceptionally high figure of merit, comparable to that of amorphous indium-gallium-zinc-oxide. Our results accelerate the development of a-ZTO and similar systems as indium-free TAOS materials.
Source: crossref · Quality: baseline
Research context
OpenAlex topics: ZnO doping and properties · Thin-Film Transistor Technologies · Copper-based nanomaterials and applications
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Department of Physics, Applied Physics and Astronomy, Binghamton University 1 , Binghamton, New York 13902, USA
Department of Chemistry, University of Bath 2 , Claverton Down, Bath BA2 7AY, United Kingdom
Department Structure and Dynamics of Energy Materials, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie 3 , Hahn-Meitner-Platz 1, 14109 Berlin, Germany
Stephenson Institute for Renewable Energy, University of Liverpool 4 , Liverpool L69 7ZF, United Kingdom
University College London, Department of Chemistry 5 , 20 Gordon Street, London WC1H 0AJ, United Kingdom
Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology 6 , Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, USA
Department of Materials, Imperial College London 7 , Exhibition Road, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom
Materials Science and Engineering, Binghamton University 8 , Binghamton, New York 13902, USA
Funding
Royal Society · U.S. Department of Energy · Air Force Office of Scientific Research · Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council · Horizon 2020 Framework Programme
References (56)
Show source-provided references
1. Metal oxides for optoelectronic applications10.1038/nmat4599 ↗
2. Room-temperature fabrication of transparent flexible thin-film transistors using amorphous oxide semiconductors10.1038/nature03090 ↗
3. Origins of high mobility and low operation voltage of amorphous oxide TFTs: Electronic structure, electron transport, defects and doping10.1109/jdt.2009.2021582 ↗
4. Material characteristics and applications of transparent amorphous oxide semiconductors10.1038/asiamat.2010.5 ↗
5. Origin of deep subgap states in amorphous indium gallium zinc oxide: Chemically disordered coordination of oxygen10.1063/1.4883257 ↗
6. Optimisation of amorphous zinc tin oxide thin film transistors by remote-plasma reactive sputtering10.1063/1.4961608 ↗
7. An indium-free anode for large-area flexible OLEDs: Defect-free transparent conductive zinc tin oxide10.1002/adfm.201503753 ↗
8. Managing the scarcity of chemical elements10.1038/nmat2969 ↗
9. Atomic layer deposited zinc tin oxide channel for amorphous oxide thin film transistors10.1063/1.4752727 ↗
10. High-performance flexible zinc tin oxide field-effect transistors10.1063/1.2120895 ↗
11. Influences of film thickness and annealing temperature on properties of sol-gel derived ZnO-SnO2 nanocomposite thin film10.1016/j.apsusc.2014.09.099 ↗
12. Transparent and conducting Zn-Sn-O thin films prepared by combinatorial approach10.1016/j.apsusc.2007.03.036 ↗
13. Characterization of zinc-tin-oxide films deposited by radio frequency magnetron sputtering at various substrate temperatures10.1016/j.tsf.2013.08.067 ↗
14. Transparent conducting amorphous Zn-Sn-O films deposited by simultaneous dc sputtering10.1116/1.1765658 ↗
15. Highly transparent and conductive zinc-stannate thin films prepared by RF magnetron sputtering10.1143/jjap.33.l743 ↗
16. High-performance zinc tin oxide semiconductor grown by atmospheric-pressure mist-CVD and the associated thin-film transistor properties10.1021/acsami.7b04235 ↗
17. Optical and electrical properties of amorphous zinc tin oxide thin films examined for thin film transistor application10.1116/1.2839860 ↗
18. Soft x-ray characterization of Zn1-xSnxOy electronic structure for thin film photovoltaics10.1039/c2cp41394a ↗
19. X-ray absorption spectroscopy elucidates the impact of structural disorder on electron mobility in amorphous zinc-tin-oxide thin films10.1063/1.4884115 ↗
20. Combinatorial studies of Zn-Al-O and Zn-Sn-O transparent conducting oxide thin films10.1016/s0040-6090(02)00205-5 ↗
21. Electrical, optical and etching properties of Zn-Sn-O thin films deposited by combinatorial sputtering10.3938/jkps.61.1651 ↗
22. Stability of transparent zinc tin oxide transistors under bias stress10.1063/1.2458457 ↗
23. The influence of visible light on transparent zinc tin oxide thin film transistors10.1063/1.2806934 ↗
24. Molybdenum as a contact material in zinc tin oxide thin film transistors10.1063/1.4875958 ↗
25. Investigation on the negative bias illumination stress-induced instability of amorphous indium-tin-zinc-oxide thin film transistors10.1063/1.4898069 ↗
26. Combinatorial study of zinc tin oxide thin-film transistors10.1063/1.2828862 ↗
27. Flexible zinc-tin oxide thin film transistors operating at 1 kV for integrated switching of dielectric elastomer actuators arrays10.1002/adma.201770219 ↗
28. Theoretical and experimental studies on the electronic structure of crystalline and amorphous ZnSnO3 thin films10.1063/1.4811788 ↗
29. 1971
30. Determination of the thickness and optical constants of amorphous silicon10.1088/0022-3735/16/12/023 ↗
31. Measurement of the refractive indices of several crystals10.1063/1.1703106 ↗
32. Criteria for choosing transparent conductors10.1557/mrs2000.151 ↗
33. Magnesium, nitrogen codoped Cr2O3: A p-type transparent conducting oxide10.1063/1.3638461 ↗
34. Perovskite Sr-doped LaCrO3 as a new p-type transparent conducting oxide10.1002/adma.201501959 ↗
35. Effect of post-deposition annealing on the structural, optical and electrical properties of IGZO films10.1007/s13391-014-4410-1 ↗
36. Electronic structure and optoelectronic properties of transparent p-type conducting CuAlO210.1063/1.1308103 ↗
37. ZnIr2O4, a p-type transparent oxide semiconductor in the class of spinel zinc-d6-transition metal oxide10.1063/1.2431548 ↗
38. p-type conductivity in CuCr1−xMgxO2 films and powders10.1063/1.1372636 ↗
39. Electrical and optical properties of amorphous indium zinc oxide films10.1016/j.tsf.2005.08.257 ↗
40. Transparent conducting oxides for photovoltaics10.1557/mrs2007.29 ↗
41. Influence of the exchange screening parameter on the performance of screened hybrid functionals10.1063/1.2404663 ↗
42. Urbach tail, disorder, and localized modes in ternary semiconductors10.1103/physrevb.69.195201 ↗
43. Theory of electron band tails and the urbach optical-absorption edge10.1103/physrevlett.57.1777 ↗
44. Lone-pair stabilization in transparent amorphous tin oxides: A potential route to p-type conduction pathways10.1021/acs.chemmater.6b01608 ↗
45. A tunable amorphous p-type ternary oxide system: The highly mismatched alloy of copper tin oxide10.1063/1.4929752 ↗
46. Efficient iterative schemes for ab initio total-energy calculations using a plane-wave basis set10.1103/physrevb.54.11169 ↗
47. Projector augmented-wave method10.1103/physrevb.50.17953 ↗
48. Restoring the density-gradient expansion for exchange in solids and surfaces10.1103/physrevlett.100.136406 ↗
49. Effects of Hubbard term correction on the structural parameters and electronic properties of wurtzite ZnO10.1016/j.commatsci.2017.06.032 ↗
50. Analysis of electronic subgap states in amorphous semiconductor oxides based on the example of Zn-Sn-O systems10.1103/physrevb.86.165210 ↗
51. Density-functional theory study of stability and subgap states of crystalline and amorphous Zn-Sn-O10.1016/j.tsf.2013.05.146 ↗
52. Generic origin of subgap states in transparent amorphous semiconductor oxides illustrated for the cases of In-Zn-O and In-Sn-O10.1002/pssa.201431871 ↗
53. Enhancing the optoelectronic properties of amorphous zinc tin oxide by subgap defect passivation: A theoretical and experimental demonstration10.1103/physrevb.95.245204 ↗
54. Spectroscopic evidence for limited carrier hopping interaction in amorphous ZnO thin film10.1063/1.3275738 ↗
55. Electronic structure of amorphous ZnO films10.1002/pssc.201400010 ↗
56. Transparent conducting oxides based on tin oxide10.1007/978-1-4419-1638-9 ↗