Physical properties of CdS thin films grown by pulsed laser ablation on conducting substrates: Effect of the thermal treatment

Structural, morphological and optical properties of CdS films, deposited by the pulsed laser ablation technique on SnO ₂: F/glass substrates, were studied as a function of time deposition. Up to our knowledge the properties of these films grown onto conducting polycrystalline substrates have not been reported before. The photoluminescence measurements showed the existence of an exciton peak at room temperature, as an indication of good crystalline quality of the layers. A thermal treatment was applied to the samples in a 100 mT Ar atmosphere at 400°C for 30 min after the deposition of a CdCl ₂ layer on them. Films characterization was carried out through X-ray diffraction, photoluminescence and atomic force microscopy measurements. The structural, optical and morphological properties as a function of growth parameters are presented and discussed. Thermal treatment makes uniform the grain size in the samples, with a tendency to increase the grain size average.