Effect of calcination atmosphere on photoluminescence properties of nanocrystalline ZrO2 thin films prepared by sol–gel dip coating method

Highly transparent and homogeneous nanocrystalline ZrO2 thin films were prepared by the sol–gel dip coating method. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of ZrO2 thin films calcined in air, O2 or N2 shows the formation of tetragonal phase with varying crystallite size. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) gives Zr 3d and O 1s spectra of thin film annealed in air, which reveal zirconium suboxide component (ZrOx, 0