Investigation of the Optical Properties of Indium Tin Oxide Thin Films by Double Integration Sphere Combined with the Numerical IAD Method

• Published in: Materials Vol. 16; no. 4; p. 1425
• Main Authors: Toral-Lopez, Alejandro, Pérez, María M, Rodríguez-Águila, Ana Belen, Cardona, Juan C, Ionescu, Ana M, Godoy, Andres
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 08.02.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: absorption; Analysis; Bending stresses; Dielectric films; double integration sphere; Electric properties; Electrical properties; Electrodes; Graphene; IAD; Indium; Indium tin oxides; Investigations; ITO; Light emitting diodes; Light transmittance; Measurement techniques; Methods; Optical properties; Optoelectronic devices; Polyethylene terephthalate; scattering; Screen printing; Spectrophotometers; Thin films; transmittance; Germany; scattering; ITO; absorption; mechanical stress; double integration sphere; transmittance; IAD
• ISSN: 1996-1944; 1996-1944
• DOI: 10.3390/ma16041425

Transparent conductive electrodes have become essential components of numerous optoelectronic devices. However, their optical properties are typically characterized by the direct transmittance achieved by making use of spectrophotometers, avoiding an in-depth knowledge of the processes involved in radiation attenuation. A different procedure based on the Double Integration Sphere combined with the numerical Inverse Adding-Doubling (IAD) method is employed in this work to provide a comprehensive description of the physical processes limiting the light transmittance in commercial indium tin oxide (ITO) deposited on flexible PET samples, highlighting the noticeable contribution of light scattering on the total extinction of radiation. Moreover, harnessing their flexibility, the samples were subjected to different mechanical stresses to assess their impact on the material's optical and electrical properties.