Eur. Phys. J. Plus (2017) 132: 5
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/i2017-11285-3

Regular Article

Effect of aging under ambient conditions on the optical properties of Al-doped ZnO thin films deposited by direct current sputtering

¹ Unité de Recherche Physique des Matériaux Isolants et Semi-Isolants (PMISI), Université de Sfax, 3018, Sfax, Tunisia
² Unité de Dynamique et Structure des Matériaux Moléculaires (UDSMM), Université du Littoral Côte d’Opale (ULCO), 62228, Calais, France
³ Unité de Dynamique et Structure des Matériaux Moléculaires (UDSMM), Université du Littoral Côte d’Opale (ULCO), 59140, Dunkerque, France

^* e-mail: amira_barhoumi@yahoo.fr

Received: 9 December 2015
Accepted: 5 December 2016
Published online: 12 January 2017

Abstract

Transparent and conductive Al-doped ZnO (AZO) thin films were deposited on a glass substrate by direct current sputtering. In a previous study, we noted the influence of time on structural and electrical characteristics of films. In the present paper, the effect of a two-year aging under ambient conditions on the optical properties was investigated. A global improvement of the optical properties of AZO thin films was observed. The optical transmittance spectra revealed a high transmittance more than 90% in the Vis-NIR regions and a high absorption in the ultraviolet range. It is assumed that the crystallinity segregation leads to the decrease of optical scattering. The results from the optical measurements showed a reorganization of the structure leading to the degradation of the structural homogeneity. Nevertheless, the evolution of the figure of merit shows that Al-doped ZnO is a good candidate for the manufacturing and the commercialization of transparent conducting oxide devices.