Skip to main content
Log in

Tailoring the structural, electrical, and optical features of Erbium(III)-Tris(8-hydroxyquinolinato) nanostructured films for optical applications: effect of film thickness

  • Published:
Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper elaborates on the thickness-dependent structural, optical, and electrical properties of Erbium(III)-Tris-8-hydroxyquinolinato (ErQ3) films. The surface morphology reveals the grains that consolidate to make denser films with increasing film thickness. The ErQ3 grain sizes increased from 80 to 187 nm as the thickness increased from 80 to 190 nm. From XRD analysis, the ErQ3 films are partially crystallized with only one peak at 2θ = 9.80° and a plateau in the range of 20–40°. Electrical measurement of ErQ3 films showed that the electrical conductivity had a strong dependence on film thickness. Transmittance and reflectance measurements showed that the films exhibited a 2.60 eV bandgap, and it does not depend on the thickness of the film. Also, the dispersion of the refractive index was analyzed to determine the essential parameters. The nonlinear optical parameters such as nonlinear refractive index and third-order nonlinear optical susceptibility were calculated by Miller's principles.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11

Similar content being viewed by others

Data availability

The Authors confirm that the datasets generated during and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

References

  1. A. Szczepaniak, J. Fichna, Organometallic compounds and metal complexes in current and future treatments of inflammatory bowel disease and colorectal cancer—a critical review. Biomolecules 9, 398 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. M.W. Ha, M.-H. Park, J.Y. Hwang, J. Kim, D.-H. Kim, T.-W. Lee et al., Synthesis and characterization of homoleptic triply cyclometalated iridium(III) complex containing 6-(pyridin-2-yl)isoquinoline moiety for solution-processable orange-phosphorescent organic light-emitting diodes. Dyes Pigm. 185, 108880 (2021)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. A. Zampetti, A. Minotto, F. Cacialli, Near-infrared (NIR) organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs): challenges and opportunities. Adv. Func. Mater. 29, 1807623 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. G. Zaiats, S. Ikeda, S. Kinge, P.V. Kamat, Quantum dot light-emitting devices: beyond alignment of energy levels. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces. 9, 30741–30745 (2017)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. C.-L. Wong, M. Ng, E.Y.-H. Hong, Y.-C. Wong, M.-Y. Chan, V.W.-W. Yam, Photoresponsive dithienylethene-containing tris (8-hydroxyquinolinato) aluminum (iii) complexes with photocontrollable electron-transporting properties for solution-processable optical and organic resistive memory devices. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 142, 12193–12206 (2020)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. F. Jiang, M. Dong, Y. Wang, Electronic structure and magnetism of Al-doped tris (8-hydroxyquinoline) iron investigated by experiment and first-principle calculation. J. Magnet. Magnet. Mater. 497, 165969 (2020)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. A. Kumar, R. Srivastava, P. Tyagi, D. Mehta, M. Kamalasanan, Effect of doping of 8-hydroxyquinolinatolithium on electron transport in tris (8-hydroxyquinolinato) aluminum. J. Appl. Phys. 109, 114511 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. J.M. Torres, N. Bakken, C.M. Stafford, J. Li, B.D. Vogt, Thickness dependence of the elastic modulus of tris (8-hydroxyquinolinato) aluminum. Soft Matter 6, 5783–5788 (2010)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. M.M. El-Nahass, A.M. Farid, A.A. Atta, Structural and optical properties of Tris(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum (III) (Alq3) thermal evaporated thin films. J. Alloy. Compd. 507, 112–119 (2010)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. M.-M. Duvenhage, M. Ntwaeaborwa, H.G. Visser, P.J. Swarts, J.C. Swarts, H.C. Swart, Determination of the optical band gap of Alq3 and its derivatives for the use in two-layer OLEDs. Opt. Mater. 42, 193–198 (2015)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. E.M. El-Menyawy, Optical properties of amorphous and crystalline tris(8-hydroxyquinoline) indium films. J. Alloy. Compd. 683, 393–398 (2016)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. J. Emsley, Nature's building blocks: an AZ guide to the elements: Oxford University Press (2011)

  13. M. Rajesh, M.R. Babu, N.J. Sushma, B.D.P. Raju, Influence of Er3+ ions on structural and fluorescence properties of SiO2-B2O3-Na2Co3-NaF-CaF2 glasses for broadband 1.53 μm optical amplifier applications. J. Non-Crystall. Solids 528, 119732 (2020)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. W.P. Gillin, R. Curry, Erbium (III) tris (8-hydroxyquinoline)(ErQ): a potential material for silicon compatible 15 μm emitters. Appl. Phys. Lett. 74, 798–799 (1999)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. S. Tolansky, Multiple-beam interferometry of surfaces and films: Dover Publications (1970)

  16. A.A.A. Darwish, S. Alharbi, M.M. Hawamdeh, A.M. Alsharari, S.I. Qashou, Dielectric properties and AC conductivity of organic films of copper (II) 2, 9, 16, 23-Tetra-tert-butyl-29 H, 31 H-phthalocyanine. J. Electron. Mater. 49, 1787–1793 (2020)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. S.I. Qashou, M. Rashad, A. Mahmoud, A. Darwish, The promotion of Indeno [1, 2-b] flourene-6, 12 dione thin film to be changed into stable aromatic compound under the effect of annealing treatment. Vacuum 162, 199–207 (2019)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. M. El-Nahass, K. Abd-El-Rahman, A.A.A. Darwish, Electrical conductivity of 4-tricyanovinyl-N, N-diethylaniline. Physica B 403, 219–223 (2008)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. A. Mahmoud, A. Darwish, S.I. Qashou, Film thickness effects on nanorods organic films of azo quinoline derivatives for optical applications. Progress Nat. Sci. Mater. Int. 29, 402–409 (2019)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. J. Bardeen, F. Slatt, L. Hall, Photoconductivity Conf, vol. 146 (Wiley, New York, 1965)

    Google Scholar 

  21. S.I. Qashou, E. El-Zaidia, A.A.A. Darwish, T. Hanafy, Methylsilicon phthalocyanine hydroxide doped PVA films for optoelectronic applications: FTIR spectroscopy, electrical conductivity, linear and nonlinear optical studies. Physica B 571, 93–100 (2019)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. F. Urbach, The long-wavelength edge of photographic sensitivity and of the electronic absorption of solids. Phys. Rev. 92, 1324 (1953)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. O. Stenzel, S. Wilbrandt, A. Stendal, U. Beckers, K. Voigtsberger, C. Von Borczyskowski, The incorporation of metal clusters into thin organic dye layers as a method for producing strongly absorbing composite layers: an oscillator model approach to resonant metal cluster absorption. J. Phys. D Appl. Phys. 28, 2154 (1995)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. S. Wemple, M. DiDomenico Jr., Behavior of the electronic dielectric constant in covalent and ionic materials. Phys. Rev. B 3, 1338 (1971)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. S.I. Qashou, S. Al Garni, A.A.A. Darwish, M.M. Hawamdeh, A. Aldrabee, Gamma radiation effect on physical properties of 2, 9-Bis [2-(4-chlorophenyl) ethyl] anthrax [2, 1, 9-def: 6, 5, 10-d′ e′ f′] diisoquinoline-1, 3, 8, 10 (2H, 9H) tetrone films. Optik 170, 540–547 (2018)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. B. Shanmugavelu, V. Ravi Kanth Kumar, R. Kuladeep, D. Narayana Rao, Third-order nonlinear optical properties of bismuth zinc borate glasses. J. Appl. Phys. 114, 243103 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors extend their appreciation to the Deanship of Scientific Research at the University of Tabuk for funding this work through Research Group RGP-S-1441-69.

Funding

The funded was provided by University of Tabuk, Grant No. (RGP-S-1441-69).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Contributions

All authors contributed equally throughout the whole manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Taymour A. Hamdalla.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest in the manuscript.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Alsharari, A.M., Qashou, S.I., Hamdalla, T.A. et al. Tailoring the structural, electrical, and optical features of Erbium(III)-Tris(8-hydroxyquinolinato) nanostructured films for optical applications: effect of film thickness. J Mater Sci: Mater Electron 33, 9966–9975 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-022-07988-2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-022-07988-2

Navigation