Structural and optical properties of nanocrystalline a-MoO3 thin films prepared at different annealing temperatures

Nanocrystalline α-MoO(3) thin films were preparedsuccessfully by thermal annealing of molybdenum(Mo) thin films deposited on quartz and silicon substratesusing DC magnetron sputtering method. The influence ofannealing temperatures ranging from 400 to 1,000 ̊ C onthe structural, morphological and optical properties of theprepared films was investigated by X-ray diffraction,Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometer (FTIR)atomic force microscopic and UV–vis spectroscopy,respectively. The results show that the crystallinity andsurface morphology of the films are strongly dependent onthe annealing temperature. Also, the optimum annealingtemperature of Mo films in our experiment was 600 ̊ C andthe films formed at this temperature exhibit only the (0k0)reflections and indicated the layered structure of α-MoO(3).The FTIR spectra confirm the formation of MoO(3). Thetransmittance of the MoO(3) films on quartz substrate wasimproved with increasing annealing temperature.