Ion Etching as a Method to Optimize the Optoelectric Parameters of Transparent Conductive Structures In₂O₃/Ag/In₂O₃

We investigated the optoelectric characteristics of transparent conducting structures of oxide/metal/oxide (OMO) type, where In₂O₃ is used as an oxide and Ag is used as a metal. Samples were obtained by magnetron sputtering. The focus is on the influence of the thickness and homogeneity of the silver layer on the optical and electrical properties of the structures. We use an ion etching method to improve performance of silver thin films and reduce thickness. Usually, in the case of poor wetting of the metal oxide substrate, the thin film grows by the island mechanism (Volmer–Weber mechanism), which leads to poor properties of the OMO structures. The proposed method consists of “thinning” the obvious continuous silver films using ion etching, because of which the thin silver films become closer to the films growing by the layer-by-layer mechanism (Frank–van der Merwe mechanism). The results obtained showed that ion etching allows us to achieve higher transparency of the structure without crucial loosing of electrical conductivity. This makes the method promising for further application in optoelectronic devices such as solar cells and displays.