P-type transparent copper-aluminum-oxide semiconductor

• US 6,696,700 B2
• Filed: 03/08/2002
• Issued: 02/24/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: National University of Singapore
• Original Assignee: National University of Singapore
• Inventors: Huang, Lei, Gong, Hao, Wang, Yue
• Primary Examiner(s): Fahmy, Wael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Le, Thao X.
• Application Number:
  US10/095,163
• Publication Number:
  US 20030057495A1
• Time in Patent Office: 718 Days
• Field of Search: 257/40-43, 428/697, 438/609, 438/681, 438/85-86, 438/104, 438/754
• US Class Current: 257/43
• CPC Class Codes: C01G 3/00 Compounds of copper
• CPC Class Codes: C01P 2002/84 by UV- or VIS- data
• CPC Class Codes: C01P 2004/03 obtained by SEM
• CPC Class Codes: C01P 2004/04 obtained by TEM, STEM, STM or AFM
• CPC Class Codes: C01P 2006/40 Electric properties
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/408 of copper or solid solutions thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/4481 by evaporation using carrier gas in contact with the source material C23C16/4486 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/022466 made of transparent conductive layers, e.g. TCO, ITO layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/1884 Manufacture of transparent electrodes, e.g. TCO, ITO
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/50 Photovoltaic [PV] energy

Abstract

This invention provides a transparent Cu—Al—O semi-conducting film having a p-type conductivity greater than 0.95×10⁻¹ S·cm⁻¹. This invention also relates to a process for preparing a Cu—Al—O film having p-type conductivity, comprising: a) controllably vaporizing organo-copper and organo-aluminum precursors and carrying the vapors into a chemical vapor deposition chamber with an inert gas flow; b)reacting and depositing the vapors on a substrate, preferably a light-transmitting substrate, through a chemical vapor deposition process.

Claims

1. A transparent Cu—

Al—

O semi-conducting film having a p-type conductivity greater than 0.95×

10<sup>−

1</sup> S·

cm<sup>−

1</sup>.

2. The film according to claim 1 having a p-type conductivity of 2.0 S·

cm<sup>−

1</sup>.

3. The film according to claim 1 having a p-type conductivity of 7.3 S·

cm<sup>−

1</sup>.

4. The film according to claim 1 having a visible light transmittance higher than 32%.

5. The film according to claim 1 having a conductivity of 2 S·

cm<sup>−

1</sup> and a visible light transmittance from 32 to 45%.

6. The film according to claim 1 having a conductivity of 7.5 S·

cm<sup>−

1</sup> and a visible light transmittance from 32 to 45%.

7. The film according to claim 1 fabricated by chemical vapor deposition of organo-copper and organo-aluminum precursors.

8. The film according to claim 7, wherein the precursors are copper and aluminum salts comprising ligands of formula I:

where X is Cu or Al and n is 2 when X is Cu and 3 when X is Al, where R₁, R₂, R₃, R₄, R₅ and R₆ are independently selected from hydrogen, CH₃, and fluorine.

9. The film according to claim 7, wherein the organo-copper precursor is selected from the group consisting of Cu(acac)₂, Cu(dpm)₂, Cu(tfa)₂, Cu(pta)2 and Cu(hfa)₂, and the organo-aluminum precursor is selected from the group consisting of Al(acac)₃, Al(dpm)₃, Al(tfa)₃, Al(pta)₃ and Al(hfa)₃.

10. The film according to claim 7, wherein the organo-copper precursor is Cu(acac)₂, and the organo-aluminum precursor is Al(acac)₃.

11. The film according to claim 7, wherein the organo-copper precursor is Cu(dpm)₂, and the organo-aluminum precursor is Al(dpm)₃.

12. The film according to claim 7 which is further annealed in air.

13. The film of claim 11 which is annealed in air at 350°

C. for 5 minutes.

14. The film according to claim 13 having a conductivity of 17 S·

cm<sup>−

1</sup> and a visible light transmittance from 32 to 52%.

15. The film according to claim 7, wherein the organo-copper and the organo-aluminum precursors are in a molar ratio of 1:

1.

16. The film according to claim 7, wherein the chemical vapor deposition is carried out by plasma-enhanced metal organic chemical vapor deposition.

17. The film according to claim 7, wherein the film is deposited on a transparent quartz substrate.

18. The film according to claim 1 which is nano-structured.

19. The film according to claim 1 which is amorphous.

20. The film according to claim 1 which is polycrystalline.

21. The film according to claim 1 which is single crystalline.