Preparation and characterization of MnSe thin films

Thin films of manganese selenide (MnSe) were deposited on indium doped tin oxide coated conducting glass (ITO) substrates using potentiostatic electrodeposition technique. The mechanism of formation of MnSe was analyzed in the potential range between −1500 and +1500 mV versus SCE. Structural studies reveal that the deposited films exhibit cubic structure with preferential orientation along (2 0 0) plane. Structural parameters such as crystallite size, strain and dislocation density are calculated and their dependency with bath temperature is studied. Surface morphology and film composition show that films with smooth surface and well-defined stoichiometry were obtained at bath temperature 70 °C. The band gap value of the deposited films was evaluated using optical absorption measurements.