Characteristics of pulse plated CdxZn1−xSe films

CdxZn1−xSe films (0 ⩽ x ⩽ 1) were deposited for the first time by the pulse plating technique at different duty cycles in the range 6-50% at room temperature from an aqueous bath containing zinc sulphate, cadmium sulphate and selenium oxide. To the author's knowledge this is the first report on pulse plated CdxZn1−xSe films. The deposition potential was −0.9 V (SCE). The as deposited films exhibited cubic structure. Composition of the films was estimated by Energy Dispersive Analysis of X-ray studies. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies indicated the binding energies corresponding to Zn(2p3/2), Cd(3d5/2 and 3d3/2) and Se(3d5/2 and 3d3/2). Optical band gap of the films varied from 1.72 to 2.70 eV as the composition varied from CdSe to ZnSe side. Atomic force microscopy studies indicated grain size in the range of 20-150 nm.