Influence of substrate temperature and solution molarity on CuO thin films' properties prepared by spray pyrolysis

In the present work, we have investigated the influence of substrate temperature and solution concentration on copper oxide (CuO) thin film properties deposited by the spray pyrolysis technique. A set of CuO thin films was deposited on glass substrate with various substrate temperatures ranging from 400 to 650 °C at two copper salt molarities. The synthesized films' structure and morphology were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The optical properties were studied using UV–visible spectroscopy. The obtained results indicate that the substrate temperature is a key parameter controlling CuO films' growth mechanisms and their physical properties. The prepared films are mainly composed of a CuO monophase. The crystallite size is reduced by increasing the substrate temperature.