Effect of substrate temperature on the structure and properties of Cu ₂O thin films

The Cu ₂O thin films were deposited by radio-frequency(RF) magnetron sputtering at different substrate temperatures. The effect of substrate temperature on the crystal structure, optical and electrical properties were studied. The X-ray diffraction patterns show that the single-phase Cu ₂O was obtained and present a preferred growth orientation (111) as the substrate temperatures increased from 500 K to 800 K. The room temperature conductivity and optotical bandgap(E _g) increase as the substrate temperature increasing. The biggest E _g, 2.58 eV, is achieved for the sample prepared at 800 K.