Solution Processed Metal Oxide Thin Films for Electronic Applications

By Zheng Cui

Solution Processed Metal Oxide Thin Films for Electronic Applications discusses the fundamentals of solution processing materials chemistry techniques as they are applied to metal oxide materials systems for key device applications. The book introduces basic information (materials properties, materials synthesis, barriers), discusses ink formulation and solution processing methods, including sol-gel processing, surface functionalization aspects, and presents a comprehensive accounting on the electronic applications of solution processed metal oxide films, including thin film transistors, photovoltaic cells and other electronics devices and circuits.

This is an important reference for those interested in oxide electronics, printed electronics, flexible electronics and large-area electronics.

• Provides in-depth information on solution processing fundamentals, techniques, considerations and barriers combined with key device applications
• Reviews important device applications, including transistors, light-emitting diodes, and photovoltaic cells
• Includes an overview of metal oxide materials systems (semiconductors, nanomaterials and thin films), addressing materials synthesis, properties, limitations and surface aspects

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Release date: Jun 11, 2020
• ISBN: 9780128149317

Book preview

The Metal Oxides Book Series Edited by Ghenadii Korotcenkov

Forthcoming Titles

• Metal Oxide Powder Technologies, Yarub Al-Douri, 9780128175057

• Palladium Oxides Material Properties, Synthesis and Processing Methods, and Applications, Alexander M. Samoylov, Vasily N. Popov, 9780128192238

• Solution Processed Metal Oxide Thin Films for Electronic Applications, Zheng Cui, 9780128149300

• Metal Oxides for Non-volatile Memory, Panagiotis Dimitrakis, Ilia Valov, 9780128146293

• Metal Oxide Nanostructured Phosphors, H. Nagabhushana, Daruka Prasad, S.C. Sharma, 9780128118528

• Nanostructured Zinc Oxide, Kamlendra Awasthi, 9780128189009

• Metal Oxide-Based Nanostructured Electrocatalysts for Fuel Cells, Electrolyzers, and Metal-Air Batteries, Teko Napporn, Yaovi Holade, 9780128184967

• Multifunctional Piezoelectric Oxide Nanostructures, Sang-Jae Kim, Nagamalleswara Rao Alluri, Yuvasree Purusothaman, 9780128193327

• Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) and its applications, Leonardo Palmisano, Francesco Parrino, 9780128199602

• Transparent Conductive Oxides, Mirela Petruta Suchea, Petronela Pascariu, Emmanouel Koudoumas, 9780128206317

• Metal oxide-based nanofibers and their applications, Vincenzo Esposito, Debora Marani, 9780128206294

• Metal Oxides in Nanocomposite-Based Electrochemical Sensors for Toxic Chemicals, Alagarsamy Pandikumar, Perumal Rameshkumar, 9780128207277

• Metal-oxides for Biomedical and Biosensor Applications, Kunal Mondal, 9780128230336

• Metal Oxide-Carbon Hybrid Materials, Muhammad Akram, Rafaqat Hussain, Faheem K Butt, 9780128226940

Published Titles

• Colloidal Metal Oxide Nanoparticles, Sabu Thomas, Anu Tresa Sunny, Prajitha V, 9780128133576

• Cerium Oxide, Salvatore Scire, Leonardo Palmisano, 9780128156612

• Tin Oxide Materials, Marcelo Ornaghi Orlandi, 9780128159248

• Metal Oxide Glass Nanocomposites, Sanjib Bhattacharya, 9780128174586

• Gas Sensors Based on Conducting Metal Oxides, Nicolae Barsan, Klaus Schierbaum, 9780128112243

• Metal Oxides in Energy Technologies, Yuping Wu, 9780128111673

• Metal Oxide Nanostructures, Daniela Nunes, Lidia Santos, Ana Pimentel, Pedro Barquinha, Luis Pereira, Elvira Fortunato, Rodrigo Martins, 9780128115121

• Gallium Oxide, Stephen Pearton, Fan Ren, Michael Mastro, 9780128145210

• Metal Oxide-Based Photocatalysis, Adriana Zaleska-Medynska, 9780128116340

• Metal Oxides in Heterogeneous Catalysis, Jacques C. Vedrine, 9780128116319

• Magnetic, Ferroelectric, and Multiferroic Metal Oxides, Biljana Stojanovic, 9780128111802

• Iron Oxide Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications, Sophie Laurent, Morteza Mahmoudi, 9780081019252

• The Future of Semiconductor Oxides in Next-Generation Solar Cells, Monica Lira-Cantu, 9780128111659

• Metal Oxide-Based Thin Film Structures, Nini Pryds, Vincenzo Esposito, 9780128111666

• Metal Oxides in Supercapacitors, Deepak Dubal, Pedro Gomez-Romero, 9780128111697

• Transition Metal Oxide Thin Film-Based Chromogenics and Devices, Pandurang Ashrit, 9780081018996

Solution Processed Metal Oxide Thin Films for Electronic Applications

Metal Oxides Series

Edited by

Zheng Cui

Printable Electronics Research Center, Suzhou Institute of Nanotech and Nanobionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, China

Series Editor

Ghenadii Korotcenkov

Department of Physics and Engineering, Moldova State University, Chisinau, The Republic of Moldova

Contents

Cover

Title page

Copyright

Contributors

Volume Editor Biography

Volume Editor Biography

Preface to the series

1: Introduction

Abstract

1.1. Solution-processed electronics

1.2. Metal oxides in solution

1.3. Structure of the book

2: Metal oxide semiconductors and conductors

Abstract

2.1. Introduction

2.2. n-Type metal oxides

2.3. P-type metal oxides

3: Metal oxide dielectrics

Abstract

3.1. Introduction

3.2. Basics and theory of dielectrics

3.3. Roles of dielectric layers in thin-film transistors

3.4. High-k metal oxide dielectrics

4: Sol–gel precursor inks and films

Abstract

4.1. Introduction

4.2. Fundamental of sol–gel process

4.3. Sol–gel precursor inks

4.4. Sol–gel process of metal oxide film

4.5. Other precursors-based metal oxides inks and films

5: Nanoparticles inks

Abstract

5.1. Introduction

5.2. Synthesis of metal oxide nanoparticles

5.3. Characterization and properties of metal oxide nanoparticles

5.4. Formulation of metal oxide nanoparticles inks

6: Coating and printing processes

Abstract

6.1. Introduction

6.2. Nonpatternable solution processes

6.3. Patternable solution processes

6.4. Roll-to-roll solution processes

6.5. Self-aligned solution processes

7: Thermal processes

Abstract

7.1. Introduction

7.2. Internal annealing

7.3. External annealing

7.4. Low-temperature enabled flexible electronics

8: Applications in photovoltaics

Abstract

8.1. Introduction

8.2. Metal oxides as buffer layers for OPVs

8.3. Electron transport layer

8.4. Hole transport layer

8.5. Metal oxides as buffer layer for perovskite PV

8.6. Electron extraction layer

8.7. Hole extraction layer

8.8. Metal oxides as electrode

8.9. Metal oxides as other functional layers

9: Applications in OLED and QLED

Abstract

9.1. Introduction of OLED and QLED

9.2. Metal oxides in OLEDs and QLEDs

Index

Copyright

Elsevier

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Notices

Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and experience broaden our understanding, changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical treatment may become necessary.

Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own experience and knowledge in evaluating and using any information, methods, compounds, or experiments described herein. In using such information or methods they should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-0-12-814930-0

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Contributors

Zheng Cui,     Printable Electronics Research Center, Suzhou Institute of Nanotech and Nanobionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, China

Haiping He,     School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, China

Xitong Hong,     School of Physics and Electronics, Hunan University, Changsha, China

Lei Liao,     School of Physics and Electronics, Hunan University, Changsha, China

Chang Liu,     School of Physics and Electronics, Hunan University, Changsha, China

Qun Luo,     Printable Electronics Research Center, Suzhou Institute of Nanotech and Nanobionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, China

Qianlei Tian,     School of Physics and Electronics, Hunan University, Changsha, China

Volume Editor Biography

Professor Zheng Cui graduated from the Southeast University, China in 1981 and had his Master’s degree and Doctoral degree in electronic engineering in 1984 and 1988. After one year, as a lecturer at the Southeast University, he was invited as a Visiting Fellow to the Microelectronics Research Center, Cavendish Laboratory of Cambridge University, United Kingdom, sponsored with a full Visiting Fellowship from the UK Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC). In 1993, he joined the Central Microstructure Facility, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory of United Kingdom, as Senior Scientist and became Principal Scientist and group leader in 1999. During his years working in the United Kingdom, he participated 25 research projects in the fields of micro and nanofabrication technologies for IC and MEMS and 10 of them as the Principal Investigator. He was the coordinator of European NANCAR project in 1997, developing state-of-the-art electron beam lithography using chemically amplified resists. He coordinated European competence center for microsystem technology in 2004, which was part of the Europractice program. In the field of micro and nanofabrication technologies, he published over 190 technical papers and 6 books. The first book Micro and Nanofabrication Technologies and Applications was published in 2005 in China. English version of the book was published in 2006 by Springer. In the following 15 years, two editions of the book have been published and the fourth edition will be published by Chinese Higher Education Press in 2020. In 2008 he published the book Nanofabrication: Principles and Capabilities and Limits by Springer and its second edition was published in 2016. He was elected as the Fellow of the UK Institution of Engineering and Technology in 2004.

In 2009 after working in the United Kingdom for 20 years, he returned to China and founded the Printable Electronics Research Center (PERC) at the Suzhou Institute of Nanotech and Nanobionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, which was then the first research center in China dedicated to printed electronics R&D. In the past 10 years, the center has developed comprehensive research themes ranging from electronic ink formulation to printing process development, with applications in printed organic/perovskite solar cells, printed carbon nanotube and metal oxide thin-film transistors, printed organic/quantum dots light emission and printed displays, printed flexible/stretchable/wearable electronics. His research team at the PERC has conducted more than 50 research projects with research funding over 100 million RMB. In the past 10 years working in China, he has authored and coauthored over 90 technical papers and authored the book Printed Electronics: Materials, Technologies and Applications with his team in 2012, which was the first book in China on the subject. The English version of this book was published by Wiley in 2016. He was the organizing chair of the first Chinese national symposium on printed electronics and the symposium has been held every year since 2010. He was the organizing chair of International Conference on Flexible and Printed Electronics (ICFPE) in 2014 and was a member of program committee in a number of other international conferences. He delivered more than 30 invited talks at various international conferences in the last 10 years.

In addition to academic research in printed electronics, Professor Zheng Cui also devoted to transferring technologies to industry. He has filed more than 70 patents in printed electronics. He and his team at PERC developed a novel hybrid printing technique to manufacture metal-mesh transparent conductive films. The invention won the Chinese outstanding patent award in 2014. The technology was subsequently transferred to a leading manufacturer of touch panels in China and implemented in mass production. Display panels integrating the metal-mesh transparent conductors as touch sensor have been commercialized and created over billions of market value. He is also a founder of two high-tech companies utilizing printed electronics technology in gas sensors and flexible electronic circuits and both have commercial products in the market.

Series Editor Biography

Ghenadii Korotcenkov earned his PhD in material sciences from the Technical University of Moldova, Chisinau, Moldova in 1976 and his doctor of science degree (doctor habilitate) in physics from the Academy of Science of Moldova in 1990 (Highest Qualification Committee of the USSR, Moscow). He has more than 45 years of experience as a scientific researcher. For a long time, he was the leader of the gas sensor group and manager of various national and international scientific and engineering projects carried out in the Laboratory of Micro- and Optoelectronics, Technical University of Moldova. His research had financial support from international foundations and programs such as the CRDF, the MRDA, the ICTP, the INTAS, the INCO-COPERNICUS, the COST, and the NATO. From 2007 to 2008, he was an invited scientist in the Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon, South Korea. After which, until the end of 2017, G. Korotcenkov was a research professor at the School of Materials Science and Engineering at the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, Gwangju, South Korea. Currently, G. Korotcenkov is the chief scientific researcher at the Department of Physics and Engineering at the Moldova State University, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova.

Specialists from the former Soviet Union know G. Korotcenkov’s research results in the field of study of Schottky barriers, MOS structures, native oxides, and photoreceivers on the basis of III–Vs compounds such as InP, GaP, AlGaAs, and InGaAs. His present scientific interests starting from 1995 include material sciences, focusing on the metal oxide film deposition and characterization, surface science, and the design of thin film gas sensors and thermoelectric convertors. These studies were carried out in cooperation with scientific teams from Ioffe Institute (St. Petersburg, Russia), University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, USA), Kiev State University (Kiev, Ukraine), Charles University (Prague, Czech Republic), St. Petersburg State University (St. Petersburg, Russia), Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago, USA), University of Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain), Moscow State University (Moscow, Russia), University of Brescia (Brescia, Italy), Belarus State University (Minsk, Belarus), South-Ukrainian University (Odessa, Ukraine).

G. Korotcenkov is the author or editor of 38 books, including the 11-volume Chemical Sensors series published by the Momentum Press (USA), 15-volume Chemical Sensors series published by Harbin Institute of Technology Press (China), 3-volume Porous Silicon: From Formation to Application published by CRC Press (USA), 2-volume Handbook of Gas Sensor Materials published by Springer (USA), and 3-volume Handbook of Humidity Measurement, which is publishing by CRC Press (USA). In addition, at present, G. Korotcenkov is a series’ editor of Metal Oxides series, which is published by Elsevier. Starting from 2017, already more than 10 volumes have been published within the framework of that series.

G. Korotcenkov is the author and coauthor of more than 600 scientific publications, including 30 review papers, 38 book chapters, and more than 250 articles published in peer-reviewed scientific journals (h-factor = 42 [Scopus] and h-factor = 51 [Google Scholar citation]). In the majority of publications, he is the first author. G. Korotchenkov is a holder of 17 patents. He has presented more than 200 reports at national and international conferences, including 17 invited talks. G. Korotcenkov was co-organizer of several international conferences. His name and activities have been listed by many biographical publications, including Who’s Who. His research activities are honored by the Prize of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova for significant results obtained in the field of exact and engineering sciences (2019); an Award of the Supreme Council of Science and Advanced Technology of the Republic of Moldova (2004); Prize of the Presidents of the Ukrainian, Belarus, and Moldovan Academies of Sciences (2003); and National Youth Prize of the Republic of Moldova in the field of science and technology (1980), among others. G. Korotcenkov also received a fellowship from the International Research Exchange Board (IREX, United States, 1998), Brain Korea 21 Program (2008–12), and Brainpool Program (Korea, 2007–08 and 2015–17).

Preface to the series

The field of synthesis, study, and application of metal oxides is one of the most rapidly progressing areas of science and technology. Metal oxides are one of the most ubiquitous compound groups on earth, which has large variety of chemical compositions, atomic structures, and crystalline shapes. In addition, metal oxides are known to possess unique functionalities that are absent or inferior in other solid materials. In particular, metal oxides represent an assorted and appealing class of materials, properties of which exhibit a full spectrum of electronic properties—from insulating to semiconducting, metallic, and superconducting. Moreover, almost all the known effects including superconductivity, thermoelectric effects, photoelectrical effects, luminescence, and magnetism can be observed in metal oxides. Therefore, metal oxides have emerged as an important class of multifunctional materials with a rich collection of properties, which have great potential for numerous device applications. Specific properties of the metal oxides, such as the wide variety of materials with different electrophysical, optical, and chemical characteristics, their high thermal and temporal stability, and their ability to function in harsh environments, make metal oxides very suitable materials for designing transparent electrodes, high-mobility transistors, gas sensors, actuators, acoustical transducers, photovoltaic and photonic devices, photo- and heterogeneous catalysts, solid-state coolers, high-frequency and micromechanical devices, energy harvesting and storage devices, nonvolatile memories, and many others in the electronics, energy, and health sectors. In these devices metal oxides can be successfully used as sensing or active layers, substrates, electrodes, promoters, structure modifiers, membranes and fibers, that is, can be used as active and passive components.

Among other advantages of metal oxides are the low fabrication cost and robustness in practical applications. Furthermore, the metal oxides can be prepared in various forms such as ceramics, thick films, and thin-films. At that for thin film deposition can be used deposition techniques that are compatible with standard microelectronic technology. Last factor is very important for large-scale production, because the microelectronic approach promotes low cost for mass production, offers the possibility of manufacturing devices on a chip, and guarantees good reproducibility. Various metal oxides nanostructures, including nanowires, nanotubes, nanofibers, core-shell structures, and hollow nanostructures also can be synthesized. As it is known, the field of metal-oxide nanostructured morphologies (e.g., nanowires, nanorods, nanotubes, etc.) has become one of the most active research areas within the nanoscience community.

The ability to create a variety of metal oxide-based composites and the ability to synthesize various multi-component compounds significantly expand the range of properties that metal oxide-based materials can have, making metal oxides by a truly versatile multifunctional material for widespread use. As it is known small changes in their chemical composition and atomic structure can be accompanied by the spectacular variation in properties and behavior of metal oxides. Even now, advances in synthesizing and characterizing techniques are revealing numerous new functions of metal oxides.

Taking into account the importance of metal oxides for progress in microelectronics, optoelectronics, photonics, energy conversion, sensor, and catalysis, a large number of various books devoted to this class of materials have been published. However, one should note that some books from this list are too general, some books are collections of various original works without any generalizations, and other ones were published many years ago. But, during past decade a great progress has been made on the synthesis as well as on the structural, physical, chemical characterization, and application of metal oxides in various devices, and a large number of papers have been published on metal-oxides. In addition, till now many important topics related to metal oxides study and application have not