PREPARATION AND PROPERTIES OF CUINS2 THIN-FILMS PRODUCED BY THE REACTIVE SPUTTERING METHOD

Nearly stoichiometric CuInS2 thin films have been prepared on Pyrex slide glass by the reactive sputtering method using CS2 as a reactive gas at a substrate temperature of 150 degrees C by controlling the CS2 partial pressure. Sputtering for 2 hours yields the thickness of 1 similar to 2 mu m. The films are preferentially oriented with the (112) plane parallel to the substrate. The forbidden gap is estimated to be 1.51 eV which is slightly smaller than that of the single crystal. For films with fairly good stoichiometry, the conduction is p-type and the resistivity ranges between 10 and 10(4) Omega . cm. A fairly large amount of carbon is incorporated during growth.