The effect of substrate temperature on the properties of ITO thin films for OLED applications

Abstract

Indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films have been deposited by rf magnetron sputtering on glass substrates at different substrate temperatures. The structural, electrical and optical properties of these films have been investigated to obtain optimum values for resistivity, optical transmittance and surface smoothness. The film deposited at a substrate temperature of 300 °C shows good conductivity, optical transmittance, crystallinity and surface smoothness. These ITO films were used to fabricate organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs). The dc current–voltage (I–V) studies on ITO/PEDOT:PSS/MEH-PPV/Al test structures show better rectifying behaviour on a smoother ITO substrate.