Compositional and Thickness Effects on the Optical Properties of Zinc–Doped Selenium–Antimony Thin Films

Authors

Austine A Mulama, Department of Physics, University of Nairobi, 30197-00100, Nairobi KenyaFollow
Julius M Mwabora, Department of Physics, University of Nairobi, 30197-00100, Nairobi KenyaFollow
Andrew O Oduor, Department of Physics and Materials Science, Maseno University, 333-40105, Maseno KenyaFollow
Cosmas M Muiva, Department of Physics, Botswana International University of Science and Technology, 00741, BotswanaFollow

Section

Physical Sciences

Abstract

Chalcogenide system of antimony (Sb)-selenium (Se)-zinc (Zn) system is a promising semiconductor for phase change memory devices due to its thermal stability and low power consumption. The study investigated the effect of film thickness and zinc content on the optical properties of thermally evaporated Sb10Se90-xZnx (x = 0, 5, 10 & 15 at. %) thin films. It was found that transmittance (T~ 85-40%) and optical band gap energy (Eopt ~ 1.60 eV – 1.22 eV) decreased but absorption coefficient (α~0.840–2.031 104 cm–1) increased with increase in zinc content. Furthermore, as the film thickness increased from 53 ± 5 nm to 286 ± 10 nm, transmittance decreased but band gap energy increased due to zinc defects and localized states in the Sb10Se90-xZnx system.

Recommended Citation

Mulama, Austine A; Mwabora, Julius M; Oduor, Andrew O; and Muiva, Cosmas M (2018) "Compositional and Thickness Effects on the Optical Properties of Zinc–Doped Selenium–Antimony Thin Films," Tanzania Journal of Science: Vol. 44: Iss. 4, Article 5.
Available at:https://doi.org/10.65085/2507-7961.1733