Structural properties of transparent Tb-doped TiO2 thin films

Abstract

Doping of TiO2 with various metal ions can modify its different properties. In this work, structural properties of transparent Tb-doped TiO2 thin films have been outlined. Thin films were deposited by high energy reactive magnetron sputtering (HE RMS) from metallic Ti-Tb target on Si and SiO2 substrates. Thin films were investigated by means of energy disperse spectrometry (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and optical transmission method. From EDS measurements Tb content in prepared thin films was determined to be 0.4 at. %, 2 at. % and 2.6 at. %. XRD analysis revealed the existence of crystalline TiO2 in the form of anatase and rutile, depending on Tb amount in examined samples. AFM images showed nanocrystalline structure of prepared thin films. Optical transmission studies showed that Tb-doped thin films are transparent to visible light. Also, the slight red shift of the fundamental absorption edge of TiO2 was observed with Tb doping.