Impact of deposition time and working pressure on delay of ice formation on aluminum doped zinc oxide thin films

Abstract

Thin films of aluminum doped Zinc Oxide were synthesized on glass substrate by RF magnetron sputtering. The thin films' structural, optical, wettability and anti-icing properties were studied as a function of deposition time and sputtering pressure. X-Ray Diffraction patterns showed an increase in the intensity of (002) peak when the deposition time was increased and when pressure was decreased. The roughness and average grain size also increased with an increment in deposition time and decreased with an increase in working pressure. Transmittance and band gap energy observed in the wavelength range of 350-800 showed that the average transmittance was 83 to 73% and 3.24-2.88 eV. The contact angle and anti-icing properties observed during the investigation demonstrated that the synthesized coating is hydrophobic with the highest water contact angle of 125.5° and the formation of ice was delayed by 4.36 times when compared to the uncoated substrate.