In this study, we have investigated the electrical properties of TaxSiyNz thin films deposited by reactive co-sputtering at different nitrogen flow ratios. The electrical resistivity and temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) were measured by an I–V measurement system including the four-point probe from 30 to 100 °C. The results indicated that the electrical resistivity decreased with increasing temperature, i.e. negative TCR, in each film prepared at different N2 flow ratios. The phase formation of a Ta–Si–N film at different N2 flow ratios (5–30%), as well as the change in microstructure from a symmetric broad peak to an asymmetric peak, was studied by a grazing incident x-ray diffractometer. In view of the fact that the grain size increases with increasing N2 flow ratio, it would be expected that increasing resistivity and magnitude of negative TCR with increasing grain size nature may be due to scattering of electrons by the grain boundaries. It is probable that coarse grained material of Ta–Si–N with amorphous-like microstructure has a higher electrical resistivity due to the high ratio of the grain boundary area and increase in non-metallic amorphous SiNx. The electrical properties of these films are also discussed by the grain boundary scattering model.
In this article, we report the thin-film deposition of indium–tin oxide (ITO) as a transparent conductive oxide (TCO) on a flexible and transparent poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) substrate by RF sputtering. PDMS, an elastomeric polymer, is highly transparent and can withstand much higher temperatures (∼200 °C) than other commercially used polymers in electronics. In this study, we discussed the Hall electrical measurements and optical transmittance data for ITO thin films on a PDMS substrate. We demonstrated that the transparent PDMS polymer is a new flexible TCO material, with suitable electrical and optical properties for use in electronic devices. An ITO thin film with an electrical resistivity of 3.8 ×10-5 Ω cm, a carrier concentration of 5.9×1021 cm3, a mobility of 3 cm2 V-1 s-1, and an average transmittance of 83% was achieved on the PDMS polymeric substrate.
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