The influence of Er doping on the optical properties of CeO2 thin films grown by PED

Er doped cerium dioxide (CeO2: Er%wt) thin films were grown on corning glass substrates at room temperature by pulsed electron beam deposition (PED) method. Er doped CeO2 targets with a diameter of 10 mm were prepared at pure CeO2 powder + different doping concentration of Er (%2, %4 and %8 wt) by cold pressing in a stainless steel die with a load 15000 kg. The Optical properties of CeO2 and Er doped CeO2 thin films were determined from reflectance and transmittance measurements at room temperature. The optical properties of CeO2 films and Er doped CeO2 films were very similar in character. The refractive index and extinction coefficients which were calculated from 3.5 to 1.25 eV (300-1000 nm), were between 1.5-3 and 0.05-0.2 respectively. The optical band gaps Eg were deduced from the absorption coefficient according to solid band theory.