Abstract
In this study, a radio frequency magnetron sputtering process was used to deposit F-doped ZnO (FZO) films on polyimide (PI) substrates. The thermal expansion effect of PI substrates induces distortion and bending, causing FZO films to peel and their electrical properties and crystallinity to deteriorate. To address these shortcomings, oxygen (O2) plasma was used to pretreat the surface of PI substrates using a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition system before the FZO films were deposited. The effects of O2 plasma pretreatment time on the surface water contact angle, surface morphologies, and optical properties of the PI substrates were investigated. As the pretreatment time increased, so did the roughness of the PI substrates. After the FZO films had been deposited on the PI substrates, variations in the surface morphologies, crystalline structure, composition, electrical properties, and optical properties were investigated as a function of the O2 plasma pretreatment time. When this was 30 s, the FZO films had optimal optical and electrical properties. The resistivity was 3.153 × 10−3 Ω-cm, and the transmittance ratios of all films were greater than 90%. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy spectra of the FZO films, particularly the peaks for O1s, Zn 2p1/2, and Zn 2p3/2, were determined for films with O2 plasma pretreatment times of 0 and 30 s. Finally, a HCl solution was used to etch the surfaces of the deposited FZO films, and silicon-based thin-film solar cells were fabricated on the FZO/PI substrates. The effect of O2-plasma pretreatment time on the properties of the fabricated solar cells is thoroughly discussed.
Highlights
Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) are electrically conductive, transparent oxide-based materials prepared via thin-film technologies and widely used in various optoelectronic devices, such as solar cells and flat panel displays (FPDs) [1]
TCO films based on a combination of indium (In) and tin (Sn) oxide have been widely used in applications of various optoelectronic devices due to their excellent conductivity and transparency
radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering was developed as a fabrication technique to study how PI substrates that had undergone different O2 plasma pretreatment times affected the physical and electrical properties of the F-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) (FZO) films
Summary
Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) are electrically conductive, transparent oxide-based materials prepared via thin-film technologies and widely used in various optoelectronic devices, such as solar cells and flat panel displays (FPDs) [1]. Park et al investigated the cost-efficient production of flexible indium-doped zinc oxide electrodes using continuous RTR sputtering [6]. Kwon et al treated a PI substrate with highly dense inductively-coupled O2 plasma from 60 to 600 s and found that the GZO films on PI substrates pretreated for 60 s had optimal crystallinity and minimal resistivity [8] These results suggest that O2 plasma pretreatment could enhance adhesion between deposition films and PI substrates, so deposited TCO films would retain better electrical properties. We investigated fluorine-doped ZnO (FZO) films grown by radio frequency (RF) sputtering on glass These had high conductivity and transparency in the visible spectral range and could be widely employed as transparent electrodes in optoelectronic devices [4]. PECVD unit at 200 ◦ C on the etched FZO/PI substrates and investigated their efficiency
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
