Production and characterization of heterostructured NiO/FTO-NiO/ITO-NiO/glass films

In this thesis, nickel oxide (NiO) films were produced using different substrates using the cascading ion layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method. NiO films were deposited on Glass, FTO and ITO substrates, and NiO/FTO, NiO/ITO, and NiO/Glass films were obtained. Structural, optical, electrical, and surface properties of the produced films were investigated. In addition, the effect of the used substrates on the physical properties of NiO films was investigated. By using X-ray patterns, the structural properties of the films such as crystallization level, grain size, micro-strain, unit cell constants and dislocation density were determined. All films have a cubic crystal structure and a preferential orientation in the (200) direction, and the grain sizes of the films range from 30-60 nm. As a result of the optical analyzes of the films, it was determined that the optical energy range values changed in the range of 3.56-4 eV. In addition, it was determined that the use of ITO base significantly increased the permeability values (40 %). The electrical properties of the films were investigated by current-voltage (I-V) characterization. All films have ohmic electrical properties. The ideal factor (η) and voltage barrier (B) values of the films changed in the range of 1.44-3.44 and 0.49-0.59 eV, respectively. By examining the surface morphologies of the films, it was determined that they have a homogeneous distribution and the choice of substrate affects the grain size on the surface.