The effect of PLD deposition parameters on the properties of p-SrCu2O2/n-Si diodes

P-type SrCu2O2 (SCO) films were deposited by pulsed laser deposition, from SCO target, on glass and n-type Si substrates. SCO films were deposited at two different substrate temperatures, namely 300 °C and 500 °C, while the oxygen pressure was kept constant at 5 × 10− 2 Pa and their properties were investigated. Films deposited at 300 °C were single phase SrCu2O2, whereas deviation from stoichiometry was observed for films deposited on Si at 500 °C. Both SCO films were p-type materials and their resistivity increased with the increase of the substrate temperature (from 142 Ω cm to 10 kΩ cm). Their transparency reached 70% even for films with thickness of 800 nm. SCO films deposited on n-type Si showed rectifying behavior and the p-SCO/n-Si heterostructure formed from low-temperature deposited SCO (300 °C) exhibited better p/n junction properties than that formed at the substrate temperature of 500 °C. Improvements which can be implemented for enhancing the output performance of the heterojunction are addressed.