Superconducting characteristics and microstructure of polycrystalline Zn-doped In2O3 films

In order to investigate the relation among the superconducting transition Tc, carrier density n, resistivity ρ and the microstructure in the polycrystalline (In2O3)1−x–(ZnO)x films, we prepared specimen films by post annealing of amorphous films with x = 0.025 at various annealing temperature Ta and for annealing time ta = 1 h and 4 h. As for microstructures, we have investigated the distribution of elements by scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS). We have found followings: (1) The annealed films clearly show the superconductivity of which Tc depends on Ta, ta and n. This indicates that the superconductivity is determined by the combination of crystallinity and carrier density. (2) The data on STEM–EELS spectra mapping of indium plasmon indicate that droplets of the pure indium phase exist inside a film, where the distribution of these droplets dispersed. Therefore, it seems that droplets do not form an electrical conducting path, that is, it is possible that observed superconductivity is due to intrinsic characteristic of polycrystalline (In2O3)1−x–(ZnO)x films.