Structural, optical and morphological properties of Cu-doped ZnS thin films synthesized by sol–gel method

In this study, ZnS and also ZnS:Cu thin films were synthesized by sol–gel method. Two different values of copper (Zn_(1−x) SCu_(x), x = 0.05, 0.1) were tested to investigate the effect of copper concentration on its physical and chemical properties of the prepared sample. The films were subjected to various analyses of structural (XRD), optical (UV–visible), and photo luminescent one (PL), as well as the determination of the functional groups, the formation of bonds using the (FTIR) spectrometry, and finally, surface layer morphology via (FE-SEM). Also, the effect of thermal treatment has been studied on certain parameters created, such as improving the crystallization of the layers, network defect enhancement, and band gap changes via annealing.