Structural and Optical Properties of Nanocrystalline Pb1-xCdxS Thin Films Prepared by Chemical Bath Deposition

In this study, nanocrystalline thin films of Pb1-xCdxS were prepared by the chemical bath deposition technique on glass slides at 333 K. The structural parameters of these films were studied by XRD. The thin films were polycrystalline in nature and doping with Cd brought about shifts in peak position and changes in peak intensity. The surface morphology of the films was characterized by AFM and SEM, and the spherical crystallite size of the films was found to range from 23 nm to 38 nm. The optical, absorption, and transmission properties of the films were further determined by UV-vis spectrophotometry, and the direct optical energy gap was found to range from 2.1 eV to 3.95 eV depending on the amount of Cd doping. Finally, the extinction coefficient, refractive index, and real and imaginary dielectric constants of the films were investigated.