A characterization on emission property of In₂O₃-SiO₂ nanocomposite thin films

Nanocomposite thin films containing finely dispersed, crystalline In₂O₃ nanoparticles embedded in SiO₂ matrix were fabricated by target-attachment sputtering method. Transmission electron microscopy observed single crystalline In₂O₃ nanoparticles uniformly embedded in SiO₂ matrix of the samples with In₂O₃ content less than about 60vol.%. Photoluminescence spectra of the In₂O₃-SiO₂ nanocomposite samples were found to comprise of the blue, green and red emissions. Analytical results indicated that the red and green emissions are correlated to the transitions from conduction band (CB) edge to the In_i^••• and V‴_In defect levels, respectively, while the blue emission is originated from the transition from CB edge to V_O^•• level or from V_O^• level to the valence band edge.