Laser induced structural phase transitions in Cu3SbS4 thin films

We investigate the laser-induced structural phase transition of Cu3SbS4 to CuSbS2. The Cu3SbS4 thin films were synthesized by a two-stage process of sputtering and subsequent sulfurization. The as-grown films were characterized by x-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy to investigate the phase purity of the material. The Cu3SbS4 thin films were irradiated with 532 nm CW laser light at different power densities and in situ Raman spectroscopy was used to investigate the phase transitions. Experimental results show an evidence of local CuSbS2 phase formation from Cu3SbS4 phase in the laser annealed areas above a critical power density. Heat transfer equations solved using COMSOL Multiphysics were used to estimate the surface temperature during the laser irradiation process.