Antimony sulfide thin films prepared by laser assisted chemical bath deposition

[Display omitted] •Antimony sulfide thin films were prepared by normal CBD and laser assisted CBD.•Characterized these films using XRD, XPS, AFM, optical and electrical measurements.•Accelerated growth was observed in the laser assisted CBD process.•These films were photoconductive. Antimony sulfide (Sb2S3) thin films were prepared by laser assisted chemical bath deposition (LACBD) technique. These thin films were deposited on glass substrates from a chemical bath containing antimony chloride, acetone and sodium thiosulfate under various conditions of normal chemical bath deposition (CBD) as well as in-situ irradiation of the chemical bath using a continuous laser of 532nm wavelength. Structure, composition, morphology, optical and electrical properties of the Sb2S3 thin films produced by normal CBD and LACBD were analyzed by X-Ray diffraction (XRD), Raman Spectroscopy, Atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV–vis spectroscopy and Photoconductivity. The results showed that LACBD is an effective synthesis technique to obtain Sb2S3 thin films for optoelectronic applications.