Solution-dependent electrostatic spray deposition (ESD) ZnO thin film growth processes

TL;DR

This study explores a solution-dependent electrostatic spray deposition method for growing ZnO thin films at 300-500°C, examining how water content influences crystal orientation and microstructure, with implications for cost-effective electronics manufacturing.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to control ZnO thin film growth via solution composition in ESD, highlighting the impact of water ratio on crystal orientation and microstructure.

Findings

Adding water suppresses c-axis crystal growth.

Water ratio influences preferred crystal orientations.

Microstructural parameters vary with solution composition.

Abstract

The present study describes a facile route of zinc oxide (ZnO) grows using the solution-dependent electrostatic spray deposition (ESD) method at temperatures ranging from 300 {\deg}C - 500 {\deg}C. In this work, zinc chloride (ZnCl2) was dissolved in ethanol (CH3CH2OH) to prepare the 0.1 M concentration of 20 ml for spray solution by ESD. Adding different deionized water (H2O) ratio, three different solutions were prepared. The results reveal that adding H2O ration, suppressing the c-axis crystal growth of ZnO thin films. The adhesion of anions was believed to be responsible for this suppression. XRD texture analysis examined the preferred orientations of the (100) and (002) planes of the ZnO thin films. Microstructural parameters namely, lattice parameters, bond length, positional parameters, full width at half maximum, crystallite sizes, lattice strain, and lattice dislocation density, are investigated. This research marks a turning point in cost-effective industrial and commercial applications for ESD-deposited electronics.