Amorphous-crystalline transformation and conductivity enhancement in annealed bismuth sulphide thin films

Abstract

Post-deposition vacuum annealing of chemically deposited Bi₂S₃ thin films has been found to enhance the dark conductivity of the films from approximately=10^-7 Omega cm^-1 to approximately=10² Omega ^-1 cm^-1 and the photoconductivity from approximately 10^-5 Omega cm^-1 to approximately=10² Omega cm^-1. Such increase is attributed to (i) an amorphous-to-crystalline transformation of the setting in at approximately=175 degrees C, confirmed by X-ray diffraction studies and (ii) loss of sulphur from the film during vacuum annealing at temperatures >200 degrees C, confirmed by the absence of this effect in air/nitrogen annealing. In the case of annealing in air, the competing effect of mobility enhancement by amorphous-crystalline transformation and mobility depreciation by oxygen chemisorption at the intergrain region is seen to contribute to a dark conductivity and photoconductivity maxima at an annealing temperature of approximately=200 degrees C.