Thin Films/Properties and Applications

Abstract

Since its discovery in early times, thin films rapidly found industrial applications such as in decorative and optics purposes. With the evolution of thin film technology, supported by the development of vacuum technology and electric power facilities, the range of applications has increased at a level that nowadays almost every industrial sector make use of them to provide specific physical and chemical properties to the surface of bulk materials. The possibility to tailor the film properties through the variation of the microstructure via the deposition parameters adopted in a specific deposition technique has permitted their entrance from the simplest like protective coatings against wear and corrosion to the most technological advanced applications such as microelectronics and biomedicine, recently. In spite of such impressive progress, the connection among all steps of the thin film production, namely deposition parameters-morphology and properties, is not fully accurate. Among other reasons, the lack of characterization techniques suitable for probing films with thickness less than a single atomic layer, along with a lack of understanding of the physics have impeded the elaboration of sophisticated models for a precise prediction of film properties. Furthermore, there remain some difficulties related to the large scale production and a relative high cost for the deposition of advanced structures, i.e. quantum wells and wires. Once these barriers are overcome, thin film technology will become more competitive for advanced technological applications.

Advancements in Solar Cell Fabrication Techniques: A Comprehensive Review

“…Various vacuum deposition techniques, such as organic vapor-phase deposition (OVPD), molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), and pulsed laser deposition (PLD), are employed in OSC fabrication to deposit organic materials under controlled conditions. These techniques offer advantages such as high purity, uniformity, and reproducibility of thin film deposition, leading to improved device performance and reliability [45]. Vacuum deposition methods are particularly well-suited for depositing multilayered structures and heterojunction interfaces in OSCs [46].…”

Photocatalytic Activities of Methylene Blue Using ZrO2 Thin Films at Different Annealing Temperatures

“…Thin film technology has diverse applications, from decorative to advanced uses in microelectronics, photovoltaic, optics, and biomedical applications [43]. Deposition methods, physical (vacuum evaporation and sputtering) or chemical (gas phase and liquid phase), impact the qualities and attributes of the films.…”

Fabrication of tunable band gap carbon based zinc nanocomposites for enhanced capacitive behaviour

“…Zinc hydroxide nitrate is a layered compound which finds applications in intercalations and immobilization anion exchanges [31]. The thin films of the Zn-based nanocomposites can be synthesized by various techniques like PVD, CVD, sputtering, spin coating etc [32]. Due to their mechanical properties, thin films can be used as coating materials for wear and corrosion protection.…”

“…Due to their mechanical properties, thin films can be used as coating materials for wear and corrosion protection. They find applications in the photovoltaic sector, electronics and optoelectronics [32].…”