Sol–Gel Synthesis of Nickel-Doped Cr2O3 Thin Films

Abstract

This work presents an experimental study dedicated to the synthesis and characterization of pure and Ni-doped chromium (III) oxide thin films. Sol–gel thin films with doping rates of 3%, 6%, 9%, and 12% were deposited onto glass substrates by the dip-coating method at room temperature using Cr(NO3)3: 9H2O as precursor. Using X-ray diffraction (XRD), infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV–Vis), and impedance spectroscopy on solids, we noted that the films are polycrystalline with a grain size ranging from 11.2[Formula: see text]nm to 24.4[Formula: see text]nm, the synthesized materials are highly transparent in the visible light with more than 90% of transmittance and have an optical bandgap less than 3.0[Formula: see text]eV overall, and the equivalent circuit of the deposited films is a resistors and capacitors (RC) parallel circuit.