Effect of copper doping on physical properties of cadmium oxide thin films

Abstract

Nanostructured materials have generated considerable interest owing to their physical and chemical properties that differ from those of their bulk counterparts. Cadmium oxide (CdO) is an important semiconducting material with varying band gap from 2.2 to 2.9 eV used for various applications. Due to its high electrical conductivity and optical transmittance in the visible region, this material is having potential application in photovoltaic devices as well. This study focuses on the preparation and characterization of CdO (undoped and 2 % Cu-doped) produced by facile sol–gel spin coating. Effect of Cu doping on the structural, optical and morphological properties of CdO have been studied.