Fabrication of ON/OFF switching response based on n-Ni-doped MoO3/p-Si junction diodes using Ni-MoO3 thin films as n-type layer prepared by JNS pyrolysis technique

The influence of nickel (Ni) doping concentrations on structural, optical, electrical and diode properties of molybdenum trioxide (MoO 3 ) thin films has been studied systematically. Ni-doped MoO 3 films and diodes were prepared for various doping concentrations of Ni such as 0, 3, 6 and 9 wt.% by jet nebulizer spray (JNS) pyrolysis technique. The structural properties of Ni-doped MoO 3 films were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The prepared films were exhibited in the orthorhombic crystal structure and sub-microsized plate-like surface morphology. The energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analysis confirmed the presence of Ni, Mo and O elements in the prepared films. Ultraviolet–visible (UV–vis) analysis results showed that the absorbance decreases with the increasing of Ni doping concentration and the minimum band gap energy ( E g = 2.25) was obtained for 9 wt.% Ni-doped MoO 3 film. From current–voltage ( I – V ) characterization, the conductivity is increased by increasing the Ni doping concentration in MoO 3 thin films. The diode measurements were performed in darkness and under light illumination of a halogen lamp. The methods of I – V , Cheung’s and Norde were used to calculate the diode parameters of ideality factor ( n ), barrier height (Φ b ) and sheet resistance ( R s ). Also, the light ON/OFF switching response of the fabricated n-NiMoO 3 /p-Si diodes was analyzed.