Role of Bismuth incorporation on the structural and optical properties in Bi x In 35‐x Se 65 thin films for photonic applications

The present paper investigated the influence of Bi concentration on the structural, linear, and non‐linear optical properties of thermally evaporated Bi x In 35‐ x Se 65 ( x = 0, 5, 7, 10, 15 at %) thin films. The structural analysis by the XRD measurements showed the crystalline nature at 7 and 15% Bi while the other concentrations showed amorphous nature. The corresponding bonding change was analyzed by Raman spectroscopy. The optical study by UV‐Vis spectroscopy showed the decrease in transmittance and an increase in absorbance property. The linear optical parameters such as absorption coefficient, extinction coefficient, optical density increased while skin depth decreased with Bi additives. The direct, as well as the indirect optical bandgap, decreased along with the decrease in the Tauc parameter. The variation is well explained on the basis of density of defect states by the Mott and Davis model. The non‐linear refractive index and non‐linear susceptibility increased significantly with Bi % which is good for non‐linear optical applications. The static linear refractive index as calculated by the Dimirov and Sakha empirical relation showed an incremental behavior with Bi% concentration and satisfied Moss's rule. The surface structure and elemental concentration were analyzed by FESEM and EDX analysis. The result of the above investigation suggests that these materials can be used as an absorbing layer for several optoelectronic and photonic applications.