Fabrication of tin-doped indium oxide thin films using aerosol deposition

Tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) thin films are a key material for optical devices owing to their high electrical conductivity and high optical transparency. In this study, ITO thin films were formed on glass and sapphire substrates at room temperature using aerosol deposition (AD), and their crystal structure, resistivity, and optical properties were investigated. The films maintained the crystal structure of the source ITO particles used to form the films. For the glass substrate, the resistivity of the ITO films was approximately 3.0 x 10^-3 Ω.cm. In addition, when the thickness was 0.24 μm, the film exhibited high optical transmittance of approximately 90 % in the visible light region, which is higher than that of commercially available ITO thin film. The results show that AD can be used to fabricate ITO films with low resistivity and high optical transmittance.