• Journal of the Semiconductor & Display Technology
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.33-36
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• 2015

It has increased several decades in the field of Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) transparent thin film, However, a major problem with this ITO thin film application is high cost compared with other transparent thin film materials[1]. So far, in order to overcome this disadvantage, we show that a transparent ITO/Ag/i-ZnO multilayer thin film electrode would be more cost-effective and it has not only highly transparent but also conductive properties. The aim of this research has therefore been to try and establish how ITO/Ag/i-ZnO multilayer thin film would be more effective than ITO thin film. Herein, we report the properties of ITO/Ag/i-ZnO multilayer thin film by using optical spectroscopic method and measuring sheet resistance. At a certain total thickness of thin film, sheet resistance of ITO/Ag/i-ZnO multilayer was drastically decreased than ITO layer approximately $40{\Omega}/{\Box}$ at same visible light transmittance. (minimal point $5.2{\Omega}/{\Box}$). Tendency, which shows lowly sheet resistive in a certain transmittance, has been observed, hence, it should be suitable for transparent electrode device.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.16 no.8
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• pp.490-496
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• 2006

ITO monolayer and ITO/Ag/ITO multilayer thin films are prepared by D.C. magnetron sputtering method. Ag layer was inserted for applying ITO to a flexible substrate at low temperature. Carrier concentration and carrier mobility of ITO and ITO/Ag/ITO thin films were measured, the transmittance of them also was done. The amorphous phase was confirmed to be combined in addition to (400) and (440) peaks from XRD result of ITO thin film. As the substrate temperature increased, the preferred orientation of (400) appeared. From the result of application of Ag layer at room temperature, the growth of columnar structure was inhibited, and the amorphous phase formed mostly. The ITO/Ag/ITO thin film represented the transmittance of above 80% when the thickness of Ag layer was 50 ${\AA}$, and the concentration of carrier increased up to above 10 times than that of ITO thin film. Finally, since very low resistance of 3.9${\Omega}/{\square}$ was observed, the effective application of low temperature process is expected to be possible for ITO thin film.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2015.08a
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• pp.187-187
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• 2015

The past thirty years have seen increasingly rapid advances in the field of Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) transparent thin film.[1] However, a major problem with this ITO thin film application is high cost compared with other transparent thin film materials.[2] So far, in order to overcome this disadvantage, we show a transparent ITO/Ag/i-ZnO multilayer thin film electrode can be the solution. In comparison with using amount of ITO as a transparent conducting material, intrinsic-Zinc-Oxide (i-ZnO) based on ITO/Ag/i-ZnO multilayer thin film showed cost-effective and it has not only highly transparent but also conductive properties. The aim of this research has therefore been to try and establish how ITO/Ag/i-ZnO multilayer thin film would be more effective than ITO thin film. Herein, we report ITO/Ag/i-ZnO multilayer thin film properties by using optical spectroscopic method and measuring sheet resistance. At a certain total thickness of thin film, sheet resistance of ITO/Ag/i-ZnO multilayer was drastically decreased than ITO layer approximately $40{\Omega}/{\square}$ at same visible light transmittance.(minimal point $5.2{\Omega}/{\square}$). Tendency, which shows lowly sheet resistive in a certain transmittance, has been observed, hence, it should be suitable for transparent electrode device.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.162-169
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• 2017

Indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films show a low sheet resistance and high transmittance in the visible range of the spectrum. Therefore, they play an important role as transparent electrodes for flat panel displays. However, their resistivity is rather high for use as a transparent electrode in large displays. One way to improve electrical and optical properties in large displays is to use ITO/Ag/ITO multilayer films. ITO/Ag/ITO multilayer films have lower sheet resistance than single layer ITO films with the same thickness. Prior to the ITO/Ag/ITO multilayer experiments, optimal condition for thickness change are necessary. Their thicknesses were deposited differently in order to analyze electrical and optical properties. However, when optimal single film characteristics are applied to ITO/Ag/ITO multilayer films, other phenomena appeared. After analyzing the electrical and optical properties by changing ITO and Ag film thickness, ITO/Ag/ITO multilayer films were optimized. By combining ITO film at $586\;{\AA}$ and Ag film at 10 nm, the ITO/Ag/ITO multilayer films showed optimized high optical transmittance of 87.65%, and the low sheet resistance of $5.5{\Omega}/sq$.

• Journal of the Semiconductor & Display Technology
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.13-16
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• 2014

We prepared the ITO/Ag multilayer thin films on soda-lime glass substrate by the Facing Target Sputtering System (FTS) at room temperature. To confirm the effect of Ag layer in ITO/Ag multilayer thin films, we have prepared various range of Ag layer in its thickness and investigated prior to the setting of ITO/Ag multilayer thin films. The thickness of Ag layer was controlled by the sputtering deposition time. Properties of as-prepared samples were investigated by using a four-point probe, UV-Visual spectrometer with a spectral visual range (400 - 800 nm) and X-ray diffractometer (XRD). As a result, the transmittance of as-prepared samples turned out to be very low in the visible range due to light-scattering on the surface of thin film as the thickness of Ag layer got increased. However, reduction of phenomenon of light-reflection in visual range was observed around 20nm of Ag thickness. We prepared the ITO/Ag multilayer thin film with a resistivity of about $8{\times}10^{-5}[{\Omega}-cm]$ and a transmittance of more than 80 % at 550 nm.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2008.11a
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• pp.66-66
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• 2008

본 연구에서는 ITO/Ag/ITO 다층 박막을 유기발광소자와 플렉시블 광전소자의 전극으로 적용하기 위하여 선형 대항 타겟 스퍼터(Linear facing target sputter) 시스템을 이용하여 성막하였고, ITO/Ag/ITO 다층박막의 전기적, 광학적, 구조적 특성을 분석하였다. 선형 대항 타겟 스퍼터 시스템은 강한 일방항의 자계와 타겟에 걸린 음극에 의해 전자의 회전, 왕복 운동이 가능해 마주보는 두 ITO 타겟 사이에 고밀도의 플라즈마를 구속 시켜 플라즈마 데미지 없이 산화물 박막을 성막시킬 수 있는 장치이다. 대항 타겟 스퍼터 시스템을 이용하여 성막한 ITO 전극을 DC power, working pressure, Ar/O2 ratio 에 따른 특성을 각각 분석하였다. glass 기판위에 최적화된 ITO 전극을 bottom layer로 두고, bottom ITO layer 위에 thermal evaporation 을 이용하여 Ag 박막을 6~20nm의 조건에 따라 두께를 다르게 성막하고, Ag 박막을 성막한 후에 다시 bottom ITO 전극과 같은 조건으로 ITO 전극을 top layer로 성막 하였다. 두 비정질의 ITO 전극 사이에 매우 앓은 Ag 박막을 성막 함으로 해서 glass 기판위에 ITO/Ag/ITO 다층 박막전극은 매우 낮은 저항과 높은 투과도를 나타낸다. ITO/Ag/ITO 박막의 전기적 광학적 특성을 보기 위해 hall measurement와 UV/visible spectrometer 분석을 각각 진행하였다. ITO/Ag/ITO 다층 박막 전극이 매우 얇은 두께임에도 불구하고 $4\Omega$/sq.의 낮은 면저항과 85%의 높은 투과도를 나타내는 이유는 ITO/Ag/ITO 전극 사이에 있는 Ag층의 표면 플라즈몬 공명 (SPR) 현상으로 설명할 수 있다. ITO/Ag/ITO 전극의 Ag의 거동을 분석 하기위해 FESEM분석과 synchrotron x-ray scattering 분석을 하였다. ITO/Ag/ITO 전극의 Ag층이 islands의 모양에서 연속적으로 연결되는 변화과정 중에 SPR현상이 일어남을 알 수 있다. 여기서, 대항 타겟 스퍼터 시스템을 이용하여 성막한 ITO/Ag/ITO 다층박막을 OLED 또는 inverted OLEDs의 top 전극으로의 적용 가능성을 보이고 있다.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Surface Engineering Conference
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• 2017.05a
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• pp.114.2-114.2
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• 2017

Transparent film heaters (TFHs) based on Joule heating are currently an active research area. However, TFHs based on an indium tin oxide (ITO) monolayer have a number of problems. For example, heating is concentrated in part of the device. Also, heating efficiency is low because it has high sheet resistance ($R_S$). Resistance of indium zinc oxide (IZO) is similar to ITO and it can be used to flexible applications due to its amorphous structure. To solve these problems, our study introduced hybrid layers of IZO/Ag/IZO deposited by magnetron sputtering, and the electrical, optical, and thermal properties were estimated for various thickness of the metal interlayer. It was found that the sheet resistance of the multilayer was mainly dependent on the thickness of the Ag layers. The $R_S$ of IZO(40)/Ag/IZO(40nm) multilayer was 5.33, 3.29, $2.15{\Omega}/{\Box}$ for Ag thickness of 10, 15, and 20nm, respectively, while the $R_S$ of an IZO monolayer(95nm) was $59.58{\Omega}/{\Box}$. The optical transmittance at 550nm for the IZO(95nm) monolayer is 81.6%, and for the IZO(40)/Ag/IZO(40nm) multilayers with Ag thickness 10, 15 and 20nm, is for 72.8, 78.6, and 63.9%, respectively. The defrost test showed that the film with the lowest RS had the highest heat generation rate (HGR) for the same applied voltage. The results indicated that IZO(40)/Ag(15)/IZO(40nm) multilayer has the best suitable property, which is a promising thin film heater for the application in vehicle windshield.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2014.02a
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• pp.336.2-336.2
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• 2014

Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) thin films are used as the Transparent Conducting Oxide (TCO), such as flat panel display, transparent electrodes, solar cell, touch screen, and various optical devices. ZnO has attracted attention as alternative materials to ITO film due to its resource availability, low cost, and good transmittance at the visible region. Recently, very thin film deposition is important. In order to minimize the damage caused by bending. However, ZnO thin film such as Ga-doped ZnO(GZO) has poor sheet resistance characteristics. To solve this problem, By adding the conductive metal on films can decrease the sheet resistance and increase the mobility of the films. In this study, We analyzed the electrical and optical characteristics of GZO/Ag/GZO (GAG) films by change in Ag and GZO thickness.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2011.08a
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• pp.127-127
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• 2011

We investigate the transparent TFTs using a transparent ZnSnO3 (ZTO)/Ag/ZTO multilayer electrode as S/D electrodes with low resistivity of $3.24{\times}10^{-5}$ ohm-cm, and high transparency of 86.29% in ZTO based TFTs. The Transparent TFTs (TTFTs) are prepared on glass substrate coated 100 nm of ITO thin film. On atomic layer deposited $Al_2\;O_3$, 50 nm ZTO layer is deposited by RF magnetron sputtering through a shadow mask for channel layer using ZTO target with 1 : 1 molar ratio of ZnO : $SnO_2$. The power of 100W, the working pressure of 2mTorr, and the gas flow of Ar 20 sccm during the ZTO deposition. After channel layer deposition, a ZTO (35 nm)/Ag (12 nm)/ZTO(35 nm) multilayer is deposited by DC/RF magnetron sputtering to form transparent S/D electrodes which are patterned through the shadow mask. Devices are annealed in air at 300$^{\circ}C$ for 30 min following ZTO deposition. Using UV/Visible spectrometer, the optical transmittances of the TTFT using ZTO/Ag/ ZTO multilayer electrodes are compared with TFT using Mo electrode. The structural properties of ZTO based TTFT with ZTO/Ag/ZTO multilayer electrodes are analyzed by high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HREM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The transfer and output characterization of ZTO TTFTs are examined by a customized probe station with HP4145B system in are.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.25-30
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• 2020

Oxide (SiO₂)/Metal(Ag)/Oxide(SiO₂, ITO, ZnO) multilayer films were fabricated using a magnetron sputtering technique at room temperature on Si (p-type, 100) and a glass substrate. The electrical and optical properties of the asymmetric multilayer films depended on the thickness of the mid-layer film and the type of oxide in the bottom layer. As the metal layer becomes thicker, the sheet resistance decreases. However, the transmittance decreases when the metal layer exceeds a threshold thickness of approximately 10~12 nm. In addition, the sheet resistance and transmittance change according to the type of oxide in the bottom layer. If the oxide has a large resistivity, the overall sheet resistance increases. In addition, the anti-reflection effect changes according to the refractive index of the oxide material. The optical and electrical properties of multilayer films were investigated using an ultraviolet visible (UV-Vis) spectrophotometer and a 4-point probe, respectively. The optimum structure is SiO₂ (30 nm)/Ag (10 nm)/ZnO (30 nm) multilayer, with the highest FOM value of 7.7×10^-3 Ω^-1.