RF magnetron sputtered indium tin oxide thin films for application in solar cells

Indium tin oxide (ITO) films were deposited at room temperature with no oxygen flow on glass substrates by RF magnetron sputtering. The effects of sputtering power and argon ambient pressure were investigated. The morphology, structural and optical properties of ITO films were examined and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and UV-VIS transmission spectroscopy. The deposited ITO films with 300 nm thickness show a high transparency between 80 and 90% in the visible spectrum and 15Omega/square sheet resistance. The ITO films are suitable for application in CuInSe
₂
thin film solar cell as transparent conductive electrode layers.