Influence of substrate on structural, morphological and optical properties of ZnO films grown by SILAR method

ZnO films were obtained by successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method from four different substrates: glass microslides, corning glass, quartz and silicon with and without oxide layer. For films deposition, a precursor solution of ZnSO4 was used, complexed with ammonium hydroxide. Prior to the film deposition, wettability of the substrates was analysed using a CCD camera. It was found that the Si without the oxide layer substrate shows hydrophobic behaviour, which makes the films less adherent and not uniform, while in the other substrates, the behaviour was optimal for the growing process. ZnO films grown on glass microslides, corning glass, quartz and Si with oxide layer were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and UV-Vis techniques. According to the XRD patterns, the films were polycrystalline, with hexagonal wurtzite structure and the patterns mentioned showed significant differences in crystallite sizes, microstrain and texture coefficient with respect to the employed substrates. The morphology of the ZnO films constituted by rice-like and flower-like structures shows differences in form and size depending on the substrate. The UV-Vis spectroscopy results show that the substrate did not influence the band gap energy value obtained from films.