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Tailoring copper sulfide thin films morphology using spray pyrolysis deposition technique

L. A. ISAC1,* , A. DUTA1, M. NANU1,2, J. SCHOONMAN2

Affiliation

  1. The Centre: Product Design for Sustainable Development, Transilvania University of Brasov, Eroilor 29, 500036, Romania
  2. Delft University of Technology, Julianalaan 136, The Netherlands

Abstract

Thin films of CuxS (x = 1-2) were deposited onto TCO (SnO2:F) glass by spray pyrolysis. As precursors, aqueous and water:alcohol solutions of copper(II) chloride, copper(II) acetate and thiourea with different compositions have been used. The substrate temperature was varied from 235 °C to 285 °C. The morphology and the composition of the as-deposited films have been carried out by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Relatively uniform with low homogeneity films are obtained when higher copper precursor concentration in spraying solution is used. The solvent (deioniozed water or water:alcohol mixture) used in spraying solution strongly influences the morphology of CuxS thin films. The films obtained from precursors’ solutions containing mixtures of water: alcohol(s) (1-propanol, ethanol, glycerine) as solvents are denser than those obtained from aqueous precursors’ solutions. The substrate temperature influences more the composition than the morphology of the sulfide layers: increasing the deposition temperature, from 235 °C to 285 °C, films containing a mixture of CuxS phases (CuS, Cu2S, Cu1.8S) with predominant phase digenite (Cu1.8S) are obtained. Increasing the number of spraying sequences, the average grains/aggregates size of CuxS deposited at 285 °C also increases..

Keywords

CuxS thin films, Spray pyrolysis deposition, Morphology, Composition.

Submitted at: July 3, 2007
Accepted at: Oct. 15, 2007

Citation

L. A. ISAC, A. DUTA, M. NANU, J. SCHOONMAN, Tailoring copper sulfide thin films morphology using spray pyrolysis deposition technique, Journal of Optoelectronics and Advanced Materials Vol. 9, Iss. 10, pp. 3072-3075 (2007)