Structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering

Yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) thin film is of great interest as an ionconductor for the electrolyte-electrode sandwich in solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) applications. YSZ electrolytes have several advantages, but its applicability has been mainly limited because of the inability to synthesize YSZ f...

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Main Author:	Ahmad Rusli, Nurhamizah
Format:	Thesis
Language:	English
Published:	2020
Subjects:	QD Chemistry
Online Access:	http://eprints.utm.my/id/eprint/102003/1/NurhamizahAhmadRusliPFS2020.pdf
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spelling	my-utm-ep.1020032023-07-25T10:16:55Z Structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering 2020 Ahmad Rusli, Nurhamizah QD Chemistry Yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) thin film is of great interest as an ionconductor for the electrolyte-electrode sandwich in solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) applications. YSZ electrolytes have several advantages, but its applicability has been mainly limited because of the inability to synthesize YSZ films at low temperatures due to its high melting point. One way to overcome such limitation is to establish the YSZ structure by optimizing the percentage of crystallinity and densification of the thin film. The current study was focused on the comparative evaluation of crystallization and densification of dense-thin YSZ film for electrolyte in SOFC. The oxygen flow rate (0-50 sccm), substrate bias voltage (0-120 V), substrate temperature (200-300°C), and deposition time (30-120 min) were evaluated in order to develop dense-thin YSZ film with high crystallinity at low substrate temperatures by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The deposition parameter controlled the general morphology and the film thickness, whereas the annealing parameter (300- 600°C) affected the crystal orientation in thin films. The current study also determined the effects of the selected deposition parameters on the properties and structures of YSZ thin films. The produced thin films were characterized by glancing angle X-ray diffraction (GAXRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), Raman spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Based on the results, a dense-thin YSZ film was produced with an average thickness of approximately 200 nm without oxygen flow. The GAXRD pattern of YSZ thin film revealed the existence of a columnar structure (cubic phases) with preferred growth along (200) lattice orientation. YSZ thin films grown at 120 V exhibited good homogeneity and uniformity (100 nm thick and 10-12 nm crystallite size) accompanied by a large microstrain along (111) lattice orientation. The sample obtained at the highest substrate temperature (300°C) revealed the lowest microstrain (0.028%) and the highest crystallinity (43%) with a non-columnar structure. The main effect of the deposition time (60 min) had the strongest effect on the lattice microstrain and the thickness of the YSZ thin film. In conclusion, the combined effects of the substrate temperature (300°C) and annealing factor (400°C) were successful in the development of dense-thin YSZ film with high crystallinity (60%) for potential electrolyte use in SOFCs. 2020 Thesis http://eprints.utm.my/id/eprint/102003/ http://eprints.utm.my/id/eprint/102003/1/NurhamizahAhmadRusliPFS2020.pdf application/pdf en public http://dms.library.utm.my:8080/vital/access/manager/Repository/vital:145902 phd doctoral Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Faculty of Science Faculty of Science
institution	Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
collection	UTM Institutional Repository
language	English
topic	QD Chemistry
spellingShingle	QD Chemistry Ahmad Rusli, Nurhamizah Structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering
description	Yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) thin film is of great interest as an ionconductor for the electrolyte-electrode sandwich in solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) applications. YSZ electrolytes have several advantages, but its applicability has been mainly limited because of the inability to synthesize YSZ films at low temperatures due to its high melting point. One way to overcome such limitation is to establish the YSZ structure by optimizing the percentage of crystallinity and densification of the thin film. The current study was focused on the comparative evaluation of crystallization and densification of dense-thin YSZ film for electrolyte in SOFC. The oxygen flow rate (0-50 sccm), substrate bias voltage (0-120 V), substrate temperature (200-300°C), and deposition time (30-120 min) were evaluated in order to develop dense-thin YSZ film with high crystallinity at low substrate temperatures by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The deposition parameter controlled the general morphology and the film thickness, whereas the annealing parameter (300- 600°C) affected the crystal orientation in thin films. The current study also determined the effects of the selected deposition parameters on the properties and structures of YSZ thin films. The produced thin films were characterized by glancing angle X-ray diffraction (GAXRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), Raman spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Based on the results, a dense-thin YSZ film was produced with an average thickness of approximately 200 nm without oxygen flow. The GAXRD pattern of YSZ thin film revealed the existence of a columnar structure (cubic phases) with preferred growth along (200) lattice orientation. YSZ thin films grown at 120 V exhibited good homogeneity and uniformity (100 nm thick and 10-12 nm crystallite size) accompanied by a large microstrain along (111) lattice orientation. The sample obtained at the highest substrate temperature (300°C) revealed the lowest microstrain (0.028%) and the highest crystallinity (43%) with a non-columnar structure. The main effect of the deposition time (60 min) had the strongest effect on the lattice microstrain and the thickness of the YSZ thin film. In conclusion, the combined effects of the substrate temperature (300°C) and annealing factor (400°C) were successful in the development of dense-thin YSZ film with high crystallinity (60%) for potential electrolyte use in SOFCs.
format	Thesis
qualification_name	Doctor of Philosophy (PhD.)
qualification_level	Doctorate
author	Ahmad Rusli, Nurhamizah
author_facet	Ahmad Rusli, Nurhamizah
author_sort	Ahmad Rusli, Nurhamizah
title	Structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering
title_short	Structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering
title_full	Structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering
title_fullStr	Structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering
title_full_unstemmed	Structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering
title_sort	structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering
granting_institution	Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Faculty of Science
granting_department	Faculty of Science
publishDate	2020
url	http://eprints.utm.my/id/eprint/102003/1/NurhamizahAhmadRusliPFS2020.pdf
_version_	1776100822833168384

Structural characterization of yttria stabilized zirconia thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering

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