• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2011.02a
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• pp.199-199
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• 2011

Recently, Thin film transistors (TFTs) with amorphous oxide semiconductors (AOSs) can offer an important aspect for next generation displays with high mobility. Several oxide semiconductor such as ZnO, $SnO_2$ and InGaZnO have been extensively researched. Especially, as a well-known binary metal oxide, tin oxide ($SnO_2$), usually acts as n-type semiconductor with a wide band gap of 3.6eV. Over the past several decades intensive research activities have been conducted on $SnO_2$ in the bulk, thin film and nanostructure forms due to its interesting electrical properties making it a promising material for applications in solar cells, flat panel displays, and light emitting devices. But, its application to the active channel of TFTs have been limited due to the difficulties in controlling the electron density and n-type of operation with depletion mode. In this study, we fabricated staggered bottom-gate structure $SnO_2$-TFTs and patterned channel layer used a shadow mask. Then we compare to the performance intrinsic $SnO_2$-TFTs and doping hafnium $SnO_2$-TFTs. As a result, we suggest that can be control the defect formation of $SnO_2$-TFTs by doping hafnium. The hafnium element into the $SnO_2$ thin-films maybe acts to control the carrier concentration by suppressing carrier generation via oxygen vacancy formation. Furthermore, it can be also control the mobility. And bias stability of $SnO_2$-TFTs is improvement using doping hafnium. Enhancement of device stability was attributed to the reduced defect in channel layer or interface. In order to verify this effect, we employed to measure activation energy that can be explained by the thermal activation process of the subthreshold drain current.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.29 no.7
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• pp.445-448
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• 2016

Transparent UV photodetector was achieved by using wide bandgap metal oxide materials. In order to realize transparent heterojunction UV photodetector, n-type ZnO and p-type NiO metal oxide materials were employed. High light-absorbing SnS layer was inserted into the n-ZnO and p-NiO layers. High-performing UV photodetector was realized by ZnO/SnS/NiO/ITO structures to provide extremely fast response times (Fall time: $7{\mu}s$ and rise time: $13{\mu}s$) and high rectifying ratio. The use of functional SnS-embedded photodetector would provide a route for high functional photoelectric devices.

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2012.05a
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• pp.110.1-110.1
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• 2012

Recently, advances in ZnO based oxide semiconductor materials have accelerated the development of thin-film transistors (TFTs), which are the building blocks for active matrix flat-panel displays including liquid crystal displays (LCD) and organic light-emitting diodes (OLED). However, the electrical performances of oxide semiconductors are significantly affected by interactions with the ambient atmosphere. Jeong et al. reported that the channel of the IGZO-TFT is very sensitive to water vapor adsorption. Thus, water vapor passivation layers are necessary for long-term current stability in the operation of the oxide-based TFTs. In the present work, $Al_2O_3$ and $TiO_2$ thin films were deposited on poly ether sulfon (PES) and $SnO_x$-based TFTs by electron cyclotron resonance atomic layer deposition (ECR-ALD). And enhancing the WVTR (water vapor transmission rate) characteristics, barrier layer structure was modified to $Al_2O_3/TiO_2$ layered structure. For example, $Al_2O_3$, $TiO_2$ single layer, $Al_2O_3/TiO_2$ double layer and $Al_2O_3/TiO_2/Al_2O_3/TiO_2$ multilayer were studied for enhancement of water vapor barrier properties. After thin film water vapor barrier deposited on PES substrate and $SnO_x$-based TFT, thin film permeation characteristics were three orders of magnitude smaller than that without water vapor barrier layer of PES substrate, stability of $SnO_x$-based TFT devices were significantly improved. Therefore, the results indicate that $Al_2O_3/TiO_2$ water vapor barrier layers are highly proper for use as a passivation layer in $SnO_x$-based TFT devices.

• Journal of Information Display
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.137-142
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• 2009

Transparent top-gate Al-Zn-Sn-O (AZTO) thin-film transistors (TFTs) with an $Al_2O_3$ protective layer (PL) on an active layer were studied, and a transparent 2.5-inch QCIF+AMOLED (active-matrix organic light-emitting diode) display panel was fabricated using an AZTO TFT backplane. The AZTO active layers were deposited via RF magnetron sputtering at room temperature, and the PL was deposited via two different atomic-layer deposition (ALD) processes. The mobility and subthreshold slope were superior in the TFTs annealed in vacuum and with oxygen plasma PLs compared to the TFTs annealed in $O_2$ and with water vapor PLs, but the bias stability of the TFTs annealed in $O_2$ and with water vapor PLs was excellent.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2013.02a
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• pp.543-543
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• 2013

Thin-film transistors (TFTs) based on oxide semiconductors have been regarded as promising alternatives for conventional amorphous and polycrystalline silicon TFTs. Oxide TFTs have several advantages, such as low temperature processing, transparency and high field-effect mobility. Lots of oxide semiconductors for example ZnO, SnO2, In2O3, InZnO, ZnSnO, and InGaZnO etc. have been researched. Particularly, zinc-tin oxide (ZTO) is suitable for channel layer of oxide TFTs having a high mobility that Sn in ZTO can improve the carrier transport by overlapping orbital. However, some issues related to the ZTO TFT electrical performance still remain to be resolved, such as obtaining good electrical contact between source/drain (S/D) electrodes and active channel layer. In this study, the bottom-gate type ZTO TFTs with staggered structure were prepared. Thin films of ZTO (40 nm thick) were deposited by DC magnetron sputtering and performed at room temperature in an Ar atmosphere with an oxygen partial pressure of 10%. After annealing the thin films of ZTO at $400^{\circ}C$ or an hour, Cu, Mo, ITO and Ti electrodes were used for the S/D electrodes. Cu, Mo, ITO and Ti (200 nm thick) were also deposited by DC magnetron sputtering at room temperature. The channel layer and S/D electrodes were defined using a lift-off process which resulted in a fixed width W of 100 ${\mu}m$ and channel length L varied from 10 to 50 ${\mu}m$. The TFT source/drain series resistance, the intrinsic mobility (${\mu}i$), and intrinsic threshold voltage (Vi) were extracted by transmission line method (TLM) using a series of TFTs with different channel lengths. And the performances of ZTO TFTs were measured by using HP 4145B semiconductor analyzer. The results showed that the Cu S/D electrodes had a high intrinsic field effect mobility and a low effective contact resistance compared to other electrodes such as Mo, ITO and Ti.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.24 no.9
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• pp.697-700
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• 2011

Thin-film transistors(TFTs) with magnesium zinc tin oxide(MZTO) channel layer are fabricated by solution-process. The threshold voltage (Vth) shifted toward positive directly with increasing Mg contents in MZTO system. Because the Mg has a lower standard electrode potential (SEP) than Sn, Zn, thus degenerate the oxygen vacancy ($V_O$). As a result, the Mg act as carrier suppressor and oxygen binder in the MZTO as well as a Vth controller.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Surface Engineering Conference
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• 2014.11a
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• pp.241-241
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• 2014

$SnO_2-core/Zn-shell$ heteronanowires were fabricated by a two-step process: thermal evaporation of Sn powders and employing a sputtering technique with a Zn target. X-ray diffraction, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, and EDX spectra coincidentally indicated that the shell layer comprised the Zn phase. From Gaussian deconvolution studies, we observed that photoluminescence (PL) spectra consisted of yellow, green, and ultraviolet (UV) emission bands, regardless of shell-coating. We speculated the possible mechanisms of these emission peaks.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2010.02a
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• pp.222-222
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• 2010

Transparent semiconductor oxide thin films have been attracting considerable attention as potential channel layers in thin film transistors (TFTs) owing to their several advantageous electrical and optical characteristics such as high mobility, high stability, and transparency. TFTs with ZnO or similar metal oxide semiconductor thin films as the active layer have already been developed for use in active matrix organic light emitting diode (AMOLED). Of late, there have been several reports on TFTs fabricated with InZnO, AlZnSnO, InGaZnO, or other metal oxide semiconductor thin films as the active channel layer. These newly developed TFTs were expected to have better electrical characteristics than ZnO TFTs. In fact, results of these investigations have shown that TFTs with the new multi-component material have excellent electrical properties. In this work, we present TFTs with inverted coplanar geometry and with a novel HfInZnO active layer co-sputtered at room temperature. These TFTs are meant for use in low voltage, battery-operated mobile and flexible devices. Overall, the TFTs showed good performance: the low sub-threshold swing was low and the $I_{on/off}$ ratio was high.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.304-308
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• 2013

The effect of a sputter deposition sequence of Cu, Zn, and Sn metal layers on the properties of $Cu_2ZnSnS_4$ (CZTS) was systematically studied for solar cell applications. The set of Cu/Sn/Zn/Cu multi metal films was deposited on a Mo/$SiO_2$/Si wafer using dc sputtering. CZTS films were prepared through a sulfurization process of the Cu/Sn/Zn/Cu metal layers at $500^{\circ}C$ in a $H_2S$ gas environment. $H_2S$ (0.1%) gas of 200 standard cubic centimeters per minute was supplied in the cold-wall sulfurization reactor. The metal film prepared by one-cycle deposition of Cu(360 nm)/Sn(400 nm)/Zn(400 nm)/Cu(440 nm) had a relatively rough surface due to a well-developed columnar structure growth. A dense and smooth metal surface was achieved for two- or three-cycle deposition of Cu/Sn/Zn/Cu, in which each metal layer thickness was decreased to 200 nm. Moreover, the three-cycle deposition sample showed the best CZTS kesterite structures after 5 hr sulfurization treatment. The two- and three-cycle Cu/Sn/Zn/Cu samples showed high-efficient photoluminescence (PL) spectra after a 3 hr sulfurization treatment, wheres the one-cycle sample yielded poor PL efficiency. The PL spectra of the three-cycle sample showed a broad peak in the range of 700-1000 nm, peaked at 870 nm (1.425 eV). This result is in good agreement with the reported bandgap energy of CZTS.

• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.20-24
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• 2017

Recently, three-dimensional (3D) light harvesting structures are highly attracted because of their high light harvesting capacity and charge collection efficiencies. In this study, we have fabricated $Cu_2ZnSn(S_xSe_{1-x})_4$ based 3D thin film solar cells on PR patterned Molybdenum (Mo) substrates using photolithography technique. Specifically, Mo patterns were deposited on PR patterned Mo substrates by sputtering and the thin Cu-Zn-Sn stacked layer was deposited over this Mo patterns by sputtering technique. The stacked Zn-Sn-Cu precursor thin films were sulfo-selenized to form CZTSSe pattern. Finally, CZTSSe absorbers were coated with thin CdS layer using chemical bath deposition and ZnO window layer was deposited over CZTSSe/CdS using DC sputtering technique. Fabricated 3-D solar cells were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis, Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) to study their structural, compositional and morphological properties, respectively. The 3% efficiency is achieved for this kind of solar cell. Further efforts will be carried out to improve the performance of solar cell through various optimizations.