Optical Properties of Tantalum Doped Zinc Oxide Thin Films Prepared by DC Plasma Sputtering

Abstract

In this study, a thin film of tantalum doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Ta) with a thickness of 50 nm was deposited on a glass substrate using dc plasma sputtering under on argon atmosphere, at a room temperature and with a target-to-substrate distance of 5 cm. Two films were prepared at different sputtering powers: the first at 70W and the second at 80W while keeping the deposition time constant at 5 minutes. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effect of plasma parameters on the optical properties of the deposited films. The results showed that the film deposited at 80W exhibited the highest absorbance, while its transmittance was lower compared to the film deposited at 70W. Furthermore, the reflectance of the prepared films demonstrated a sharp decrease in the 80W sample showing the lowest reflectance among the studied conditions.