Electrical and Optical Properties of Electron Irradiated ZnO: Li Thin Films

Abstract

The effects of 8 MeV electron irradiation (with variable fluence) on the electrical and optical properties of Lithium doped Zinc oxide thin films prepared by sol-gel synthesis are reported. There is a decrease in crystallinity and crystallite size with increase in fluence, as confirmed by XRD and SEM. We observe a decrease in transmittance, band gap and refractive index, while there is an increase in the extension coefficient with the fluence. I-V measurements have shown a decrease in leakage current and interestingly, the metal-semiconductor-metal (M-S-M) device shows only the ohmic behavior after irradiation.