Structural, Optical and Dielectric Performance of Molybdenum Trioxide Thin Films Sandwiched With Indium Sheets

Abstract

In this work, we report the enhancements in the structural, optical and dielectric properties of molybdenum trioxide that are achieved by insertion of 50 and 100 nm thick indium sheets between layers of MoO3. The films which are coated onto ultrasonically glass substrates under a vacuum pressure of 10 -5 mbar exhibited metal induced crystallization process upon insertion of indium sheets. Optically, indium sheets tuned the transmittance and reflectance, significantly, increased the absorption coefficient values and formed interbands in the band gap of MoO3. The energy band gap decreased with increasing indium sheets thickness. On the other hand, the insertion of indium layers into the structure of MoO3 is observed to improve the dielectric response of these films to values that nominate them for used in thin film transistor technology. In the same context, the analyses of the optical conductivity which are carried out with the help of Drude-Lorentz approach have shown that the presence of indium sheets can increase the optical conductivity and enhance the plasmon frequency and free charge carrier density of MoO3. The plasmon frequency is tuned in the range of 1.68-7.16 GHz making MoO3 films attractive for plasmonic applications.