Relationship Between Between the Doping Levels and Some Physical Properties of SnO2:Sb Thin Films Spray-Deposited on Optical Glass

SnO2:Sb thin films were prepared by the spray pyrolysis technique on optical micro slide glass at substrate temperature 793 (+/- 5) K. The relationship between the antimony doping level and the electrical, structural and optical properties of the films were investigated. The X-ray diffraction patterns showed that the films are polycrystalline. The grain size varies from 28.19 to 33.59 nm. Atomic force microscopic study revealed the surface of SnO2:Sb to be made of nanocrystalline particles. The electrical study has revealed that the films are degenerate and exhibit n-type electrical conductivity. The SnO2:Sb films had a minimum resistivity of 0.28 x 10(-4) Omega cm, maximum carrier density of 37.6 x 10(19) cm(-3) and mobility of 590 cm(2)/V.s. The sprayed SnO2:Sb film having minimum sheet resistance of 0.17 Omega/cm(2), highest figure of merit of 135 x 10(-4) Omega(-1) at 550 nm. The sheet resistance attained for the doped film in this study has been lower than the values reported for 2 wt % antimony doped tin oxide films prepared from aqueous solution of SnCl2 center dot 2H(2)O precursor. The obtained results revealed that the structures and properties of the films were greatly affected by doping levels.