Preparation and adhesion study of indium tin oxide films on quartz optical fibers

摘要

Uniform and transparent ITO films were deposited onto quartz optical fibers through a sol-gel process, and the properties of the ITO films coated quartz optical fibers were investigated. Field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), atomic force microscope (AFM) techniques and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used to characterize the performance and phase of ITO films, transmittance and resistivity were measured by ultraviolet-visible (UV-VIS) spectrophotometer and avometer. Results indicated that the films are homogeneous and smooth composed of In_2O_3 gain with sizes of 16.5 nm, which decides the value of the resistivity. Good adhesion between ITO films and the surface of quartz optical fibers was achieved, and factors affecting the morphology, structure, and properties of the deposited ITO films were also discussed.