Structure and surface morphology of nano-crystalline CdZnTe films by vacuum deposition method

Nano-crystalline CdZnTe films were grown on ITO glass by vacuum deposition method. The thickness, composition, surface morphology and structure were studied by the step profiler, the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscope (AFM). The results showed that the films possess a preferable growth surface of (111). The films are rich in amorphous Te at the beginning of the growth, but tend to the stechiometric composition of zinc blend structure of CdZnTe crystal. The surface roughness (Ra) of the films was 2-5 nano-meters. With the increase of the time, the individual grains tend to form continues multi-grain layer. For the deposition time of 15, 30 and 45min, the thickness of the film as measured to be 100, 300 and 400nm, and the average size of the gain are 43.15, 30.81 and 71.94nm respectively.