Influence of substrate temperature on the properties of ZnTe:Cu films prepared by a magnetron co-sputtering method.

ABSTRACT

Copper-doped Zinc Tellurium (ZnTeCu) films were deposited on borosilicate glass using magnetron co-sputtering technique. The influence of the substrate temperature on the structural, morphological, optical and electrical properties of ZnTeCu films was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), UV-Vis spectrophotometer and Hall effect measurement system. The results indicate that substrate temperature significantly affects the properties of the ZnTeCu films. When the substrate temperature increases from room temperature to 600 °C, the (111)-preferred orientation of ZnTeCu films is gradually replaced by the (220)-preferred orientation. At high substrate temperatures (≥500 °C), the CuxTe phase appears in the ZnTeCu films, resulting in higher carrier concentration (>1019 cm-3) and lower resistivity (<10-2 Ω cm) of the prepared films.