Abstract
V
2O
5 thin films were prepared under various conditions by using reactive RF sputtering technique. The microstructure and electrical properties of the films are have been investigated. X-ray diffraction data revealed the films deposited at low O
2/Ar ratio are amorphous. The orthorhombic structure of film improved after post annealing at 873
K. The microstructure parameters (crystallite/domain size and macrostrain) have been evaluated by using a single order Voigt profile method. Using the two-point probe technique, the dark conductivity as a function of the condition parameters such as film thickness, oxygen content and temperature are discussed. It was also found that, the behaviour of
ρd versus
d was found to fit properly with the Fuchs–Sondheimer relation with the parameters:
ρ
o
=
2.14
×
10
7
Ω
cm and
ℓ
o
=
112
±
2
nm. At high temperature, the electrical conductivity is dominated by grain boundaries, the values of activation energy and potential barrier height were 0.90
±
0.02
eV and 0.92
±
0.02
V, respectively.