Vol. 25 No. 2 (2026): Mapana Journal of Sciences
Research Articles

Electrical Resistance Modulation in Silver Oxide Thin Films as a Function of Thickness

PDF
  • Shivakumar Siddanna,
  • Devidas G B,
  • S. M. Hanagodimath,
  • Omnath Patil
Shivakumar Siddanna
Dept of Physics Kuvempu University Shankaraghatta, Shimogga, Karnataka, India
Devidas G B
Dept of Physics Kuvempu University Shankaraghatta, Shimogga, Karnataka, India
S. M. Hanagodimath
Dept of Physics, Gulbarga University, Kalaburagi, Karnataka, India
Omnath Patil
Dept of Physics, Gulbarga University, Kalaburagi, Karnataka, India
DOI: https://doi.org/10.12723/mjs.77.1

Published 2026-05-29

Keywords

  • Silver oxide,
  • RF sputtering,
  • Annealing,
  • XRD,
  • FESEM

Copyright (c) 2026

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Silver oxide thin films have been deposited on engraved fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) glass substrates using the radio-frequency (RF) sputtering technique. RF sputtering was selected for its ability to produce uniform, high-quality thin films with good adhesion to the substrate. After deposition, the films have been subjected to post–deposition annealing at 200°C for 2 hours to improve their structural stability and electrical properties.  Thicknesses of deposited films vary from 42-  660 nm and was precisely measured utilizing 3Dnon contact optical profiler. The electrical characteristics of Ag2O thin films have been examined through current–voltage (I-V) measurements performed at room temperature. Results indicate that the electrical resistivity decreased with increasing thin-film thickness due to improved continuity, then increased at higher thicknesses, which can be attributed to changes in grain structure, defect density, and carrier transport mechanisms. Electrical resistance measurements were performed using the Vander Pauw method, ensuring accurate resistivity measurements for thin-film samples. Structural analysis of deposited films was conducted using X-ray diffraction (XRD), which provided insights into the crystallographic phases and orientations of the Silver Oxide films. Additionally, surface morphology and microstructural properties have been studied using field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), providing information on grain size, surface uniformity, and film continuity.

PDF

References

  1. . N. R. C. Raju, K. J. Kumar, and A. Subrahmanyam, “Physical properties of silver oxide thin films by pulsed laser deposition: Effect of oxygen pressure during growth,” J. Phys. D, Appl. Phys., vol. 42, no. 13, p. 135411, 2009.
  2. . N. T. Tsendzughul and A. A. Ogwu, “Visible light activated antimicrobial silver oxide thin films,” in Advances in Medical and Surgical Engineering, W. Ahmed, D. A. Phoenix, M. J. Jackson, and C. P. Charalambous, Eds. London, UK: Academic Press, 2020, pp. 179–239, doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-819712-7.00012-7.
  3. . S. Siddanna, G. B. Devidas, B. S. Nischit, K. Naveenkumar, and S. M. Hanagodimath, “Optical Studies of Silver Oxide Deposited Thin Films Using the RF Sputtering Technique,” Indian J. Sci. Technol., vol. 17, no. 40, pp. 4138–4143, Oct. 2024, doi: 10.17485/IJST/v17i40.1079.
  4. . S. R. Lee, M. M. Rahman, K. Sawada, and M. Ishida, “Fabrication of a highly sensitive penicillin sensor based on charge transfer techniques,” Biosens. Bioelectron., vol. 24, no. 7, pp. 1877–1882, 2009.
  5. . A. Díaz-Parralejo, R. Caruso, A. L. Ortiz, and F. Guiberteau, “Densification and porosity evaluation of ZrO₂–3 mol.% Y₂O₃ sol–gel thin films,” Thin Solid Films, vol. 458, no. 1–2, pp. 92–97, 2004.
  6. . S. R. Lee, M. M. Rahman, M. Ishida, and K. Sawada, “Development of a highly-sensitive acetylcholine sensor using a charge-transfer technique on a smart biochip,” TrAC, Trends Anal. Chem., vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 196–203, 2009.
  7. . G. A. Mostafa and A. Al-Majed, “Characteristics of new composite-and classical potentiometric sensors for the determination of pioglitazone in some pharmaceutical formulations,” J. Pharm. Biomed. Anal., vol. 48, no. 1, pp. 57–61, 2008.
  8. . C. Feldmann and H. O. Jungk, “Polyol-mediated preparation of nanoscale oxide particles,” Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 359–362, 2001.
  9. . L. J. Van der Pauw, “A method of measuring specific resistivity and Hall effect of discs of arbitrary shape,” Philips Res. Rep., vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 1–9, 1958.
  10. . W. G. John, Measurement, Instrumentation and Sensors. New York, NY, USA: McGraw-Hill, 1998.
  11. . W. B. Elsharkawy et al., “Tuning the structural, optical properties and antibacterial activity of poly (vinyl chloride)/poly (methyl methacrylate)/silver oxide nanocomposites for potential optoelectronic and medical applications,” Sci. Rep., vol. 15, no. 1, p. 41722, 2025.
  12. . K. N. Kumar et al., “Sputter deposited tungsten oxide thin films and nanopillars: Electrochromic perspective,” Mater. Chem. Phys., vol. 278, Art. no. 125706, 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.matchemphys.2022.125706.
  13. . J. Gupta, H. Shaik, K. N. Kumar, S. A. Sattar, and G. A. Reddy, “Optimization of deposition rate for E-beam fabricated tungsten oxide thin films towards profound electrochromic applications,” Appl. Phys. A, vol. 128, no. 6, p. 498, 2022.
  14. . M. A. Dawood et al., “Some of electrical and detection properties of nano silver oxide,” in IOP Conf. Ser.: Mater. Sci. Eng., vol. 454, no. 1, p. 012161, 2018.
  15. . A. Purohit, S. Chander, A. Sharma, S. P. Nehra, and M. S. Dhaka, “Impact of low temperature annealing on structural, optical, electrical and morphological properties of ZnO thin films grown by RF sputtering for photovoltaic applications,” Opt. Mater., vol. 49, pp. 51–58, 2015.
  16. . R. Karthick et al., “Understanding the enhanced electrical properties of free-standing graphene paper: The synergistic effect of iodide adsorption into graphene,” RSC Adv., vol. 9, no. 58, pp. 33781–33788, 2019.
  17. . J. Yun et al., “Unconventional thickness dependence of electrical resistivity of silver film electrodes in substoichiometric oxidation states,” Acta Mater., vol. 265, p. 119637, Feb. 2024, doi: 10.1016/j.actamat.2023.119637.
  18. . S. F. Alhasan, B. A. Bader, and E. T. Salim, “Surface morphology and roughness of silver oxide prepared employing pulsed laser at optimum laser fluence,” Mater. Today: Proc., vol. 42, pp. 2845–2848, 2021.
  19. . A. V. Filip et al., “Ultrathin films of silver by Magnetron Sputtering,” Inorganics, vol. 10, no. 12, Art. no. 235, 2022, doi: 10.3390/inorganics10120235.
  20. . S. Sagadevan, “Synthesis, structural, surface morphology, optical and electrical properties of silver oxide nanoparticles,” Int. J. Nanoelectron. Mater., vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 1–7, 2016.
  21. . S. Asgary and P. Esmaili, “Effect of reactive gas flow on structural and optical properties of sputtered silver oxide thin films; Kramers–Kronig method,” Opt. Quantum Electron., vol. 55, no. 2, Art. no. 118, 2023, doi: 10.1007/s11082-022-04388-y.

Most read articles by the same author(s)