Analysis of the optical parameters of amorphous ternary oxides Sn 1 − xZn xO and Sn 1 − xNi xO processed by combinatorial ion-beam sputter deposition

We employed combinatorial ion-beam sputter deposition (IBSD) at low substrate temperatures of 100  °C to generate thin films of the amorphous ternary oxides Sn 1 − xZn xO (a-TZO) and Sn 1 − xNi xO (a-TNO) with continuous compositional gradients over a distance of several centimeters in the film plane. The spatial compositional profiles were assessed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements and indicate that amalgamation of the binary source materials spans the entire compositional range of both amorphous ternary alloys. Combinatorial IBSD thus offers an interesting alternative to conventional growth techniques employed in combinatorial growth. Furthermore, correlating the information on lateral composition with lateral measurements of the optical bandgap and of the refractive index dispersion shows that the bandgap as a function of x is almost linear for both alloys in the entire composition range and the compositional dependence of the refractive index can be well described by the effective-medium approach of Bruggeman. The optical results indicate that a-TZO ( x Zn > 0.7) and a-TNO ( x Ni > 0.3), both of which are formed of abundant chemical elements, may act as substitute materials for resource-critical indium tin oxide at least in some applications.We employed combinatorial ion-beam sputter deposition (IBSD) at low substrate temperatures of 100  °C to generate thin films of the amorphous ternary oxides Sn 1 − xZn xO (a-TZO) and Sn 1 − xNi xO (a-TNO) with continuous compositional gradients over a distance of several centimeters in the film plane. The spatial compositional profiles were assessed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements and indicate that amalgamation of the binary source materials spans the entire compositional range of both amorphous ternary alloys. Combinatorial IBSD thus offers an interesting alternative to conventional growth techniques employed in combinatorial growth. Furthermore, correlating the information on lateral composition with lateral measurements of the optical bandgap and of the refractive index dispersion shows that the bandgap as a function of x is almost linear for both alloys in the entire composition range and the compositional dependence of the refractive index can be well described by ...