Sol–gel derived ZnO–CeO₂ thin films on glass substrate

The microstructure and optical properties of crystalline ZnO–CeO₂ thin films on glass substrate at various preheating temperatures, annealing temperatures and time were investigated. The relative intensity ratio values of the diffraction peaks of ZnO–CeO₂ thin films and grain growth behavior were related to the preheating temperature, annealing temperature, and time. A suitable thermal treatment results in higher surface energy, which improves the surface morphology of the grown film. The ZnO–CeO₂ thin films present high transparency (over 70%) in the visible region of the optical spectrum. - Highlights: • The effects of thermal treatment conditions of ZnO–CeO₂ films are investigated. • ZnO–CeO₂ films show high transparency in the wavelength range of visible region. • An optical bandgap of 3.32 eV was obtained for the prepared films