Using different chemical methods for deposition of copper selenide thin films and comparison of their characterization

Different chemical methods such as Successive Ionic Layer Adsorption and Reaction (SILAR), spin coating and spray pyrolysis methods were used to deposite of copper selenide thin films on the glass substrates. The films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) spectroscopy and UV-vis spectrophotometry. The XRD and SEM studies showed that all the films exhibit polycrystalline nature and crystallinity of copper selenide thin films prepared with spray pyrolysis greater than spin coating and SILAR methods. From SEM and AFM images, it was observed copper selenide films were uniform on the glass substrates without any visible cracks or pores. The EDX spectra showed that the expected elements exist in the thin films. Optical absorption studies showed that the band gaps of copper selenide thin films were in the range 2.84-2.93 eV depending on different chemical methods. The refractive index (n), optical static and high frequency dielectric constants (epsilon(0), epsilon(infinity)) values were calculated by using the energy bandgap values for each deposition method. The obtained results from different chemical methods revealed that the spray pyrolysis technique is the best chemical deposition method to fabricate copper selenide thin films. This absolute advantage was lead to play key roles on performance and efficiency electrochromic and photovoltaic devices. (c) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.