Thickness effect on structural, optoelectronic properties and photocatalytic activity of low-cost spin-coated In2O3 films

[Display omitted] •Low cost, highly oriented In2O3 films were prepared using the spin coating method.•High homogeneity, low roughness and continuity characterize the prepared films.•High structural quality lead to low: extinction coefficient, refraction index and resistivity.•Gap energy decreases as the thickness increases.•Good photocatalytic activity and enhancement observed with the rise of the thickness. Low-cost, highly oriented In2O3films were prepared through the spin-coating method, the microstructural; optoelectronic, electric properties and water remediation were studied varying the number of deposited spin-coated layers from 1 to 7. XRD, Raman, IR, AFM, and SEM analysis were used, confirming the deposit of cubic In2O3 with high structural quality. The electrical and optical analysis reveals that the high structural quality leads to low: resistivity, refractive-index, and extinction coefficient. Finally, the water remediation performance was modeled by the elimination of methylene-blue, through the structural and optoelectronic properties, a mechanism explaining the elimination of pollutants was proposed.