Effect of annealing on the thermoelectricity of indium tin oxide thin film thermocouples

Xinhang Jin, Binghe Ma, Keli Zhao, Zexun Zhang, Jinjun Deng, Jian Luo, Weizheng Yuan

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

32 Scopus citations

Abstract

The effect of annealing on the thermoelectricity of indium tin oxide (ITO) thin film thermocouples (TFTCs) was studied. A microstructure characterisation indicate the influence of two different annealing mechanisms on the thermoelectric properties, namely, recrystallisation and carrier concentration. The ITO thin films recrystallised when the annealing temperature reached 1100C in air, which improved the thermoelectric reproducibility, linearity, and stability of the TFTCs. More oxygen vacancies were produced in the ITO thin films after annealing at 400C in vacuum, but were reduced after annealing at 1100C in air. The Sn2+ ions transformed into Sn4+ ions in the ITO 90/10 thin films after annealing, providing additional free electrons in the films. These microstructural transformations are related to changes in the thermoelectric properties of the ITO TFTCs, as described by the thermoelectric theory of degenerated semiconductors. A decrease in the Seebeck coefficient after annealing was attributed to increases in the carrier concentrations and recrystallisation. Additionally, after annealing at 1100C in air, the Seebeck coefficient of the ITO TFTCs agreed with the theoretical value. These results can be used to control thin film thermoelectric properties by different annealing processes.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)4602-4609
Number of pages8
JournalCeramics International
Volume46
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2020

Keywords

  • Annealing
  • ITO
  • Seebeck coefficient
  • Thermocouples
  • Thin film

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