• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.365-370
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• 2015

Zinc tin oxide transparent thin film transistors (ZTO TTFTs) were fabricated on oxidized $n^+$ Si wafers. The thickness of ~30 nm $Al_2O_3$ films were deposited on the oxidized Si wafers by atomic layer deposition, which acted as the gate insulators of ZTO TTFTs. The $Al_2O_3$ films were rapid-annealed at $400^{\circ}C$, $600^{\circ}C$, $800^{\circ}C$, and $1,000^{\circ}C$, respectively. Active layers of ZTO films were deposited on the $Al_2O_3/SiO_2$ coated $n^+$ Si wafers by rf magnetron sputtering. Mobility and threshold voltage were measured as a function of the rapid-annealing temperature. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were carried out to observe the chemical bindings of $Al_2O_3$ films. The annealing effects of gate-insulator on the properties of TTFTs were analyzed based on the results of XPS.

• 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.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.32-37
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• 2018

We report on the efficient detection of NO gas by an all-oxide semiconductor p-n heterojunction diode structure comprised of n-type zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods embedded in p-type copper oxide (CuO) thin film. The CuO thin film/ZnO nanorod heterostructure was fabricated by directly sputtering CuO thin film onto a vertically aligned ZnO nanorod array synthesized via a hydrothemal method. The transport behavior and NO gas sensing properties of the fabricated CuO thin film/ZnO nanorod heterostructure were charcterized and revealed that the oxide semiconductor heterojunction exhibited a definite rectifying diode-like behavior at various temperatures ranging from room temperature to $250^{\circ}C$. The NO gas sensing experiment indicated that the CuO thin film/ZnO nanorod heterostructure had a good sensing performance for the efficient detection of NO gas in the range of 2-14 ppm under the conditions of an applied bias of 2 V and a comparatively low operating temperature of $150^{\circ}C$. The NO gas sensing process in the CuO/ZnO p-n heterostructure is discussed in terms of the electronic band structure.

• Journal of Information Display
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.165-168
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• 2010

A solution-processed multicomponent oxide, yttrium hafnium zinc oxide (YHZO), was synthesized and deposited as a gate insulator. The YHZO film annealed at $600^{\circ}C$ contained an amorphous phase based on the results of thermogravimetry, differential thermal analysis, and X-ray diffraction. The electrical characteristics of the YHZO film were analyzed by measuring the leakage current. The high dielectric constant (16.4) and high breakdown voltage (71.6 V) of the YHZO films resulted from the characteristics of $HfO_2$ and $Y_2O_3$, respectively. To examine if YHZO can be applied to thin-film transistors (TFTs), indium gallium zinc oxide TFTs with a YHZO gate insulator were also fabricated. The desirable characteristics of the YHZO films when used as a gate insulator show that the limitations of the general binary-oxide-based materials and of the conventional vacuum processes can be overcome.

• Journal of the Semiconductor & Display Technology
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.43-49
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• 2014

Zinc-tin oxides (ZTO) thin film transistors have been fabricated at different process pressure via re sputtering technique. TFT properties were improved by depositing channel layers at lower pressure. From the analysis of TFTs comprised of multi layer channel, deposited consecutively at different sputtering pressure, it was suggested that the electrical characteristics of TFTs were mainly affected by interfacial layer due to their high conductance, however, the stability under the NBIS condition was influenced by whole bulk layer due to low concentration of positive charges, which might be generated by the oxygen vacancy transition, from Vo0 to $Vo^{2+}$. Those improvements were attributed to increasing sputtered target atoms and decreasing harmful effects of oxygen molecules by adopting low sputtering pressure condition.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.247-253
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• 2018

We examined the characteristics of indium tin zinc oxide (ITZO) thin film transistors (TFTs) on polyimide (PI) substrates for next-generation flexible display application. In this study, the ITZO TFT was fabricated and analyzed with a SiOx/SiNx gate insulator deposited using plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) below $350^{\circ}C$. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) results revealed that the oxygen vacancies and impurities such as H, OH and $H_2O$ increased at ITZO/gate insulator interface. Our study suggests that the hydrogen related impurities existing in the PI and gate insulator were diffused into the channel during the fabrication process. We demonstrate that these impurities and oxygen vacancies in the ITZO channel/gate insulator may cause degradation of the electrical characteristics and bias stability. Therefore, in order to realize high performance oxide TFTs for flexible displays, it is necessary to develop a buffer layer (e.g., $Al_2O_3$) that can sufficiently prevent the diffusion of impurities into the channel.

• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
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• v.59 no.11
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• pp.2016-2020
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• 2010

Indium-zinc-oxide (IZO) films were deposited at room temperature via RF sputtering with varying the flow rate of additive nitrogen gas ($N_2$). Thin film transistors (TFTs) with an inverted staggered configuration were fabricated by employing the various IZO films, such as $N_2$-added and pure (i.e., w/o $N_2$-added), as active channel layers. For all the deposited IZO films, effects of additive $N_2$ gas on their deposition rates, electrical resistivities, optical transmittances and bandgaps, and chemical structures were extensively investigated. Transfer characteristics of the IZO-based TFTs were measured and characterized in terms of the flow rate of additive $N_2$ gas. The experimental results indicated that the transistor action occurred when the $N_2$-added (with $N_2$ flow rate of 0.4-1.0 sccm) IZO films were used as the active layer, in contrast to the case of using the pure IZO film.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2010.08a
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• pp.166-166
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• 2010

Recently, TFTs based on amorphous oxide semiconductors (AOSs) such as ZnO, InZnO, ZnSnO, GaZnO, TiOx, InGaZnO(IGZO), SnGaZnO, etc. have been attracting a grate deal of attention as potential alternatives to existing TFT technology to meet emerging technological demands where Si-based or organic electronics cannot provide a solution. Since, in 2003, Masuda et al. and Nomura et al. have reported on transparent TFTs using ZnO and IGZO as active layers, respectively, much efforts have been devoted to develop oxide TFTs using aforementioned amorphous oxide semiconductors as their active layers. In this thesis, I report on the performance of thin-film transistors using amorphous indium gallium zinc oxides for an active channel layer at room temperature. $SiO_2$ was employed as the gate dielectric oxide. The amorphous indium gallium zinc oxides were deposited by RF magnetron sputtering. The carrier concentration of amorphous indium gallium zinc oxide was controlled by oxygen pressure in the sputtering ambient. Devices are realized that display a threshold voltage of 1.5V and an on/off ration of > $10^9$ operated as an n-type enhancement mode with saturation mobility with $9.06\;cm^2/V{\cdot}s$. The devices show optical transmittance above 80% in the visible range. In conclusion, the fabrication and characterization of thin-film transistors using amorphous indium gallium zinc oxides for an active channel layer were reported. The operation of the devices was an n-type enhancement mode with good saturation characteristics.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2015.08a
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• pp.209.1-209.1
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• 2015

Indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO), indium zinc oxide (IZO) 그리고 zinc tin oxide (ZTO) 같은 zinc oxide 기반의 산화물 반도체는 높은 이동도, 투과도 그리고 유연성 같은 장점을 갖고 있어, display application의 backplane 소자로 적용되고 있다. 또한 최근에는 산화물 반도체를 이용한 thin-film transistor (TFT) 뿐만아니라 resistive random access memory (RRAM), flash memory 그리고 pH 센서 등 다양한 반도체 소자에 적용을 위한 연구가 활발히 진행 중이다. 그러나 zinc oxide 기반의 산화물 반도체의 전기 화학적 불안정성은 위와 같은 소자에 적용하는데 제약이 있다. 산화물 반도체의 안정성에 영향을 미치는 다양한 요인들 중 한 가지는, sputter 같은 plasma를 이용한 공정 진행 시 active layer가 plasma에 노출되면서 threshold voltage (Vth)가 급격하게 변화하는 plasma damage effect 이다. 급격한 Vth의 변화는 동작 전압의 불안정성을 가져옴과 동시에 누설전류를 증가시키는 결과를 초래 한다. 따라서 본 연구에서는, IGZO 기반의 TFT를 제작 후 plasma 분위기에 노출시켜, power와 노출 시간에 따른 전기적 특성 변화를 확인 하였다. 또한, thermal annealing을 적용하여 열처리 온도와 시간에 따른 Vth의 회복특성을 조사 하였다. 이러한 결과는 추후 산화물 반도체를 이용한 다양한 소자 설계 시 유용할 것으로 기대된다.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.30 no.8
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• pp.469-473
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• 2017

We investigated the effect of different thin-film thicknesses (25, 30, and 40 nm) on the electrical performance of solution-processed indium-zinc-oxide (IZO) thin-film transistors (TFTs). The structural properties of the IZO thin films were investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM). AFM images revealed that the IZO thin films with thicknesses of 25 and 40 nm exhibit an uneven distribution of grains, which deforms the thin film and degrades the performance of the IZO TFT. Further, the IZO thin film with a thickness of 30 nm exhibits a homogeneous and smooth surface with a low RMS roughness of 1.88 nm. The IZO TFTs with the 30-nm-thick IZO film exhibit excellent results, with a field-effect mobility of $3.0({\pm}0.2)cm^2/Vs$, high Ion/Ioff ratio of $1.1{\times}10^7$, threshold voltage of $0.4({\pm}0.1)V$, and subthreshold swing of $0.7({\pm}0.01)V/dec$. The optimization of oxide semiconductor thickness through analysis of the surface morphologies can thus contribute to the development of oxide TFT manufacturing technology.