The Effect of Post Annealing on Physical Properties of NiTe<sub>2</sub> Thin Film Fabricated by Magnetron Sputtering

Abstract

In this study, the effect of post annealing time on the physical properties of NiTe<sub>2</sub> thin films with 2D structure deposited by co-sputtering was investigated. After heat treatment for 10 min, nickel ditelluride thin films with a composition of Ni : Te = 1 : 2 exhibited transmittance of 46% and a resistivity of 40 μΩ • cm. When using both Ni and Te targets, the formation of NiTe<sub>2</sub> with 2D structure was found to depend on the co-sputtering and heat treatment conditions. Thin films with the composition of NiTe<sub>2</sub> were deposited on glass substrates by co-sputtering (Radio Frequency : Te, Direct Current : Ni). The Ni : Te = 1: 2 composition was confirmed by X-ray Photo Electron Spectroscopy (XPS) after in situ heat treatment in the sputter chamber (10 min, 20 min, 40 min, 80 min). In this study, we confirmed that the NiTe<sub>2</sub> thin film with the ratio of Ni : Te = 1 : 2 can be obtained by co-sputtering, followed by in situ heat treatment. We believe that the NiTe<sub>2</sub> thin film is a potential candidate for transparent electrodes because of its high electrical conductivity and 2D structure. It should be possible to reduce the thickness of the NiTe<sub>2</sub> films with 2D structure by exfoliation, thus increasing their optical transparency.