Electrical Performance of Hafnium Doped In2O3 Thin-Film Transistors Prepared Using a Solution Method

Indium hafnium oxide thin-film transistors (TFTs) were prepared by the sol-gel method, and their crystal structures, surface morphologies, chemical compositions, optical and electrical properties were systematically investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, and a semiconductor parameter analyser. We mainly study the effects of hafnium doping on indium oxide-based thin-film transistors through the following electrical properties, including field-effect mobility (μ FE), carrier concentration, on/off current ratio (Ion/Ioff), threshold voltage (Vth), and subthreshold slope (SS). The oxygen defects concentration decreased from 25.83% to 17.82% when Hf doping was increased to 5 mol%. The effect of Hf doping on the structure, as well as the properties of the Hf-InOx thin films, was explored and it was found that Hf as a carrier inhibitor can effectively suppress the carrier concentration. This reduces the oxygen vacancy defects and improves the electrical performance of In2O3TFTs devices. The doped thin-film transistor exhibits excellent electrical properties with a mobility (μ) of 11.69 cm2/Vs, a threshold voltage (VTH) of 1.68 V, a subthreshold slope (SS) of 0.68 V/dec, and an on/off current ratio (Ion/Ioff) of 107 when the Hf doping level is 3 mol%. Research indicates that the Hf-InOx thin film prepared by the sol-gel method is a low-cost, high-performance, and widely applicable active layer material.