• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.48 no.12
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• pp.1064-1069
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• 2010

Thin films have been used in a large variety of technological applications such as solar cells, optical memories, photolithographic masks, protective coatings, and electronic contacts. If thin films experience frequent temperature changes, thermal stresses are generated due to the difference in the coefficient of thermal expansion between the film and substrate. Thermal stresses may lead to damage or deformation in thin film used in electronic devices and micro-machined structures. Thus, knowledge of the thermomechanical properties of thin films, such as the coefficient of thermal expansion, is an important issue in determining the stability and reliability of the thin film devices. In this study, thermal cycling of Cu and Ag thin films with various microstructures was employed to assess the coefficient of thermal expansion of the films. The result revealed that the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of the Cu and Ag thin films increased with an increasing grain size. However, the effect of film thickness on the CTE did not show a remarkable difference.

• Journal of the Semiconductor & Display Technology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.57-60
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• 2018

Recently, Thin-film transistors (TFTs) are fundamental building blocks for state-of-the-art microelectronics, such as flat-panel displays and system-on-glass. Zinc oxide thin films have the advantage that they can grow at low temperature and can obtain high charge movility. Also the zinc oxide thin film can be used to control the resistance according to the oxygen content, so it is very easy to obtain the desired physical properties. In this paper, we fabricated a zinc oxide thin film on a polished copper substrate through a solution process, then improved the crystallinity through a geat treatment porcess, and studied to transfer it on a flexible substrate after the heat treatment was completed.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.16-20
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• 2021

In this study, we tried finding new materials to improve the stain resistance properties of polymer insulating materials. Using the filtered vacuum arc source (FVAS) with a graphite target source, DLC thin films were deposited on silicon and polymer insulator substrates depending on their thickness to confirm the surface properties, physical properties, and structural properties of the thin films. Subsequently, the possibility of using a DLC thin film as a protective coating material for polymer insulators was confirmed. DLC thin films manufactured in accordance with the thickness of various thin films exhibited a very smooth and uniform surface. As the thin film thickness increased, the surface roughness value decreased and the contact angle value increased. In addition, the elastic modulus and hardness of the DLC thin film slightly increased, and the maximum values of elastic modulus and hardness were 214.5 GPa and 19.8 GPa, respectively. In addition, the DLC thin film showed a very low leakage current value, thereby exhibiting electrical insulation properties.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.216-221
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• 2006

ZnO thin films prepared by PLD method exhibit an excellent optical property, but may have some problems such as incomplete surface roughness and crystallinity. In this study, undoped ZnO buffer layers were deposited on (0001) sapphire substrates by ultra high vacuum pulse laser deposition (UHV-PLD) and molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) methods, respectively. After post annealing of ZnO buffer layer, undoped ZnO thin films were deposited under different oxygen pressure ($35{\sim}350$ mtorr) conditions. The Arsenic-doped (1, 3 wt%) ZnO thin layers were deposited on the buffer layer of undoped ZnO by UHV-PLD method. The optical property of the ZnO thin films was analyzed by photoluminescence (PL) measurement. The ${\theta}-2{\theta}$ XRD analysis exhibited a strong (002)-peak, which indicates c-axis preferred orientation. Field emission-scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) revealed that microstructures of the ZnO thin films were varied by oxygen partial pressure, Arsenic doping concentration, and deposition method of the undoped ZnO buffer layer. The denser and smoother films were obtained when employing MBE-buffer layer under lower oxygen partial pressure. It was also found that higher Arsenic concentration gave the enhanced growing of columnar structure of the ZnO thin films.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.182-185
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• 2018

Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films have the advantages of growing at a low temperature and obtaining high charge mobility (carrier mobility) [1]. Furthermore, the zinc oxide thin film can be used to control application resistance depending on its oxygen content. ZnO has the desired physical properties, a transparent nature, with a flexible display that makes it ideal for use as a thin-film transistor. Though these transparent flexible thin-film transistors can be manufactured in various manners, manufacturing large-area transistors using a solution process is easier owing to the low cost and flexible substrate. The advantage of being able to process at low temperatures has been attracting attention as a preferred method. However, in the case of a thin-film transistor fabricated through a solution process, it is reported that charge mobility is lower. To improve upon this, a method of improving the crystallinity through heat treatment and increasing electron mobility has been reported. However, as the heat treatment temperature is relatively high at $500^{\circ}C$, an application where a flexible substrate is absent would be more suitable.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2013.02a
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• pp.688-688
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• 2013

Al-doped ZnO (AZO) thin films have attracted a lot of attention as a cheap transparent conducting oxide (TCO) material that can replace the expensive Sn-doped In2O3. In particular, AZO thin films are widely used as a window layer of chalcogenide-based thin film solar cells such as Cu(In,Ga)Se2 and Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS). Mostly important requirements for the window layer material of the thin film solar cells are the high transparency and the low sheet resistance, because they influence the light absorption by the activelayer and the electron collection from the active layer, respectively. In this study, we prepared the AZO thin films by RF magnetron sputtering using a ZnO/Al2O3 (98：2wt%) ceramic target, and the effect of the sputtering condition such as the working pressure, RF power, and the working distance on the optical, electrical, and crystallographic properties of the AZO thin films was investigated. The AZO thin films with optimized properties were used as a window layer of CZTS thin film solar cells. The CZTS active layers were prepared by the electrochemical deposition and the subsequent sulfurization process, which is also one of the cost-effective synthetic approaches. In addition, the solar cell properties of the CZTS thin film solar cells, such as the photocurrent density-voltage (J-V) characteristics and the external quantum efficiency (EQE) were investigated.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.17 no.10
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• pp.1023-1028
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• 2004

We fabricated AIN thin film by using RF magnetron sputtering and studied the structural characteristic of AIN thin film with the change of the deposition conditions such as Ar/$N_2$ flow ratio, working pressure, and the distance between substrate and target. The orientation and surface roughness of AIN thin film were studied by using XRD and AFM. We can not identify the orientation of the thin film deposited in Ar, while we obtained the (l00) orientation of the thin film with the addition of $N_2$. Especially, the thin film deposited at 18/2 (seem) of Ar/$N_2$ flow ratio exhibited to be the most (100) oriented. The (100) orientation of thin film becomes weaker as the working pressure becomes higher. The further distance between substrate and target is stronger the (100) orientation of the thin film, but the (100) orientation becomes weaker and (002) orientation started to appear as the distance is shorter. The surface roughness of the thin film deposited at 50$0^{\circ}C$ in Ar only is 1.1 nm, while very smooth thin film of 0.4～0.6 nm is obtained with the addition of $N_2$.

• Electrical & Electronic Materials
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• v.9 no.7
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• pp.690-695
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• 1996

We have systematically investigated the characterization of V$_{2}$O$_{5}$ thin films as a counter electrode for lithium based complementary electrochromic devices. The V$_{2}$O$_{5}$ thin films were prepared by thermal vacuum evaporation with varing the substrate temperature and film thickness. In electrochromic devices for smart windows, the WO$_{3}$ thin films with 400-800 nm thickness require to be capable of reversibly injection 10-15 mC/cm$^{2}$ of lithium, which is readily accomplished charge-balanced switching in a V$_{2}$O$_{5}$ thin films with 100-150nm thick. The V$_{2}$O$_{5}$ thin films produces considerably small changes in optical modulation properties in the visible and near infrared region(500-1100 nm) compared to the amorphous WO$_{3}$ thin films on 10-15 mC/cm$^{2}$ of lithium injection and the V$_{2}$O$_{5}$ thin films can therefore act as a counter electrode to WO$_{3}$ in a lithium based complementary clectrochromic devices. After 10$^{5}$ coloration/bleaching switching time, the degradation does not occurs and the devices exhibit a stable optical modulation in V$_{2}$O$_{5}$ thin films. It has shown that the injected lithium ion amounts in crystalline V$_{2}$O$_{5}$ thin films with the same thickness is large by 3-5 mC/cm$^{2}$ of lithium compared to the amorphous thin films in the same driving conditions. Therefore, to optimize the device performance, it is necessary to choose an appropriate film thickness and crystallinity of V$_{2}$O$_{5}$ for amorphous WO$_{3}$ film thickness as a working electrode.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.298-308
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• 2010

The mechanical properties and surface characteristics of parylene thin film were improved using Xylydene-based dimers (DPX-C, DPX-D, and DPX-N). A single-parylene-C, D, N film and a hybrid chemical and physical parylene thin films in which two types are mixed were manufactured for each dimer by adjusting the deposition conditions and the thickness of the thin film by input. Parylene was deposited by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and the thermal characteristics of the single thin film and the hybrid thin film were compared by thermal analysis. The mechanical properties of the thin films were characterized by tensile strength, elongation, and tear force tests, and the surface characteristics of the thin films were evaluated by contact angle and surface energy measurements. The hybrid chemical parylene thin film in which two types are mixed can complement the strengths and weaknesses of the different dimers, while the physical parylene thin film can freely adjust the thin film characteristics of the coated surface and the opposite surface.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 2004.07c
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• pp.1618-1620
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• 2004

The $Pb(Zr_{0.4}Ti_{0.6})O_3/Pb(Zr_{0.6}Ti_{0.4})O_3$ [PZT(4060)/(6040)] multilayered thin films were deposited by RF Sputtering method on the Pt/Ti/$SiO_2$/Si substrate. This procedure was repeated several times to form PZT(4060)/(6040) heterolayerd thin films. The effects on the structural and dielectric properties of PZT multilayered thin films were investigated. The MFM(Metal Ferroelectric Metal) type capacitors were made using the PZT(4060)/(6040) multilayered thin films deposited with optimum deposition condition. An enhanced dielectric property was observed in the PZT(4060)/(6040) multilayered thin films. The relative dielectric constant and dielectric loss at 100Hz of the PZT(4060)/(6040)-5 multilayered thin films were about 1106 and 0.016, respectively.