High-resolution x-ray spectroscopic study of the electronic structure of the prototypicalp-type transparent conducting oxideCuAlO2

Abstract

The electronic structure of the prototypical p-type transparent conducting oxide CuAlO2 has been studied by O K and Cu L3 shell x-ray absorption and emission and Al Kα excited valence photoemission and nonresonant Cu L3 emission spectra are dominated by the Cu 3d partial density of states. All three techniques reveal mixing between O 2p and Cu 3d states. Cu L3 emission spectra excited just above the L3 threshold are dominated by inelastic scattering with 5.5 eV energy loss. This energy is shown to correspond to the separation between the dominant peaks in the filled and empty densities of states.