Investigation of the Structural Properties of Thermally Evaporated Aluminium Thin Films on Different Polymer Substrates.

Authors

M. G. Faraj, Department of Physics, School of Science, Faculty of Science and Health, University of Koya, Koya, Kurdistan Region, Iraq.Follow
K. Ibrahim, Nano-Optoelectronics Research and Technology Laboratory School of Physics, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Minden 11800 Penang, Malaysia.Follow

Abstract

This paper studies the properties of thermally evaporated 1 μm of aluminium (Al) thin films on polyimide (PI) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates at room temperature with thermal evaporation in a vacuum of about 3 x 10-5 Torr for use as window materials for solar cells. Effects of substrate types on the structural and electrical characteristics of the films were studied. Sets of experiments were conducted to optimize the deposition of Al films with appropriate deposition parameters. The deposited films were analyzed with atomic force microscopy (AFM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD). Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectra shows presence of Al contacts on both PI and PET substrates. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results illustrate proper formation of Al (111) plane at 38.4o with full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 0.1968° on both samples. Atomic force microscope (AFM) images reveal that both samples possess smooth surfaces with surface roughness root mean square (RMS) below 10 nm.

Recommended Citation

G. Faraj, M. and Ibrahim, K. (2015) "Investigation of the Structural Properties of Thermally Evaporated Aluminium Thin Films on Different Polymer Substrates.," International Journal of Thin Film Science and Technology: Vol. 4 : Iss. 1 , PP -.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.aaru.edu.jo/ijtfst/vol4/iss1/3