Impact of deposition parameters on the optical properties of Fe2O3 thin films prepared by SILAR method

Abstract

In order to explore the structures, morphology, and optical features of Fe2O3 nanofilms, the successive ionic layer adsorption and reactions (SILARs) technique was utilized to deposit the nanofilms onto glassy slides at varying concentrations of the precursor. Three precursor concentrations (0.025, 0.05 and 0.075) M were used. Analysis using X-ray diffraction (XRD) presented the crystalline structure of the Fe2O3 thin films. Field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) was used to evaluate the morphological features of the films. The results demonstrate that the surfaces of the films are nonporous and that there is a good distribution for spherical nanosize particles. The number of cycles is another important parameter that has been tested and its effect on the optical properties of prepared films was evaluated. The optical properties like optical absorption and energy gaps are affected directionally by changing the concentration and cycle numbers during the preparation. The latest objective of our study is to determine the role of precursor concentrations and deposition cycles in preparing thin films that have electronic applications such as sensors and solar cells.