Synthesis and characterization of single- and co-doped SnO2 thin films for optoelectronic applications

Doped SnO2 thin films have been prepared by sputtering from two different targets: antimony doped tin oxide (ATO) and antimony and zinc doped tin oxide (AZTO). In the case of ATO ceramic, the antimony amount only reaches 0.012 mol per formula unit due to its evaporation at high temperature while the presence of Zn2+ in AZTO prevents the antimony evaporation, greatly enhances the ceramic density and allows the deposition of thin films with a high deposition rate. Both types of thin films have a dense morphology with a smooth surface and they are polycrystalline. For post-annealed ATO thin films, the Drude model was applied to deduce the carrier concentration, the optical mobility as well as the resistivity. The carrier concentration is around ten times higher for ATO thin films compared to AZTO. The two combined effects (higher carrier concentration and mobility) for ATO thin films doped with 1.2% of Sb lead to the best optoelectronic performances, confirming previous results obtained with ceramics. Nevertheless, we have a better opportunity to modulate the conductivity in the case of AZTO thin films.