Effects of Solution History on Sol‐Gel Processed Tin‐Oxide Thin‐Film Transistors

Abstract

Antimony‐doped tin‐oxide (SbTO) thin films deposited by solution processing methods represent a promising avenue toward low‐cost transparent and flexible electronics, but reproducibility and performance homogeneity of devices prepared from these thin films have been seldom investigated. In this study, the role of sol‐gel precursor aging is investigated by comparing SbTO thin‐film transistors (TFT) fabricated from two different sol‐gel solutions: the first one was aged for 4 years, whereas the second was prepared freshly. For each of the solutions, a set of TFT was assembled on the same chip, to investigate the distinct roles of aging and sample inhomogeneity on the electronic and transport properties of SbTO. Higher electron mobility, but lower on/off ratios, was found in TFTs assembled from freshly prepared solution, an effect that may be assigned to larger size of SbTO grains. This study demonstrates the critical role of the solution “history” in determining the properties and reproducibility of SbTO TFTs, over other factors, including local film inhomogeneity and local fluctuations of the annealing temperature.

On the photo-induced electrical conduction related to gas sensing of the Sb:SnO2/TiO2 heterostructure

“…4(b) yields the value of (E cap -) = 78 ± 11 meV. The temperature range (240-300 K) for the evaluation of photo-induced decay parameters is in good agreement with previous publications [20,34,35]. For a wider range, other defects may become relevant for the trapping process and compete for electron capture, leading to the overlap of the decay curves, as observed.…”

“…Hydrolysis of Sn 4+ and Sb 5+ ions were promoted by addition of NH 4 OH. The obtained suspension was submitted to dialysis against distilled water for elimination of chloride and fluoride ions [30,34].…”

Investigation of sensing properties of sol–gel processed 4 at%Sb:SnO2/TiO2 thin films

“…Hydrolysis of Sn 4+ and Sb 5+ ions were promoted by addition of NH 4 OH. The suspension was submitted to dialysis against distilled water for elimination of chloride and fluoride ions [7,25].…”

Annealing temperature influence on sol-gel processed zirconium oxide thin films for electronic applications

“…In order to find a substitute for the well-established silicon dioxide (SiO 2 ) in metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) [6], dielectric oxides with high dielectric constant (high-k) have been investigated, such as hafnia (HfO 2 ), alumina (Al 2 O 3 ), and zirconia (ZrO 2 ), because they are suitable to improve the channel modulation in MOSFETs through reduced tunneling current, even for small thicknesses [7][8][9]. Zirconia is a favorable alternative due to its high dielectric constant (k = 18-26), wide bandgap (4.7-7.8 eV), good thermal stability against silicate formation, excellent chemical inertness, high breakdown field, and good catalytic properties [2,3,10,11].…”

“…In this work we present the investigation and finding of homogeneous, non-porous, and high electrical insulating ZrO 2 thin films deposited by non-alkoxide solgel route at different processing temperatures. The morphological, optical and electrical properties of the zirconia thin films are investigated in order to employ this insulating layer in future electronic applications, such as memristor [5,21,22] and transistor devices [5,6]. In this paper, T an extensive study of ZrO 2 thin films deposited on different substrates at different annealing temperatures is presented, as well as its dielectric performance obtained through electrical characterizations on metalinsulator-metal (MIM) capacitors.…”