STRUCTURE AND ELECTRICAL-PROPERTIES OF CDNITE NANOSTRUCTURED THIN-FILMS

CdNiTe nanostructured thin films were prepared by radio frequency sput tering from a target of CdTe and nickel compressed powders. The struct ural and electrical film properties were studied as a function of the atomic nickel concentration in the films (x=0.05, 0.10, and 0.15). X-r ay diffraction patterns showed a cubic CdTe parent structure with a (1 11) preferential orientation. The microcrystalline grain size in the f ilms showed a systematic decrease with the increase of Ni content, sta rting with grain sizes of around 35 nm for x=0.05, down to an average of 26 nm for x=0.15. From scanning electron microscopy micrographs, a fine granular morphology with a random distribution of grain sizes in the films was observed. The film electrical resistivity was measured a s a function of the temperature in the range T:26-473 K. The temperatu re dependence of the dark resistivity over this wide temperature range showed a clear deviation from a simple thermally activated carrier tr ansport mechanism. (C) 1996 American Institute of Physics.