Gamma irradiation effect on the structural, morphological, optical and luminescence properties of ZnS layers

Zinc sulfide (ZnS) films elaborated by chemical bath deposition (CBD) technique on glass substrates are irradiated with different doses of gamma rays ranged from 10 kGy to 100 kGy in air at room temperature by using 60Co as a source. The structural analysis confirms cubic structure for non-irradiated and irradiated films. Moreover, structural properties indicate significant improvement for the low radiation doses. The morphological study by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) reveals striking modifications with the rise of radiation dose. Transmittance T(λ) and reflectance R(λ) spectra highlight an enhancement of the optical properties for the post-irradiated films. Band gap energy varies between 3.81 eV and 3.91 eV. Photoluminescence (PL) study shows a high sensibility to gamma radiation doses.