Preparation and Performance of Ce-Doped V2O5 Thin Films Deposited on FTO Substrates

Ce-doped V2O5 thin films on FTO conductive glass substrates were prepared by electrodeposition-assisted sol-gel method. The influences of Ce doping on the phase, surface morphology and optical properties of V2O5 thin films deposited on FTO substrates were examined. The results revealed that the films have good crystallinity and high purity. Ce doping is slightly helpful to the increase of grain size of the films. With 1.0 at.% Ce adoption, the morphology of V2O5 films is basically the same as that of the undoped films. The results of ultraviolet-visible-near infrared spectroscopy (UV-Vis-NIR) showed that, with the doping of Ce, the transmittance of V2O5 film decreases, the optical band gap narrows, the absorption edge moves to the long wave direction, and the red shift occurs. With infrared spectrum test, the infrared transmittance of Ce-doped V2O5 films before and after phase transition is about 53.9 %, which is lower than that of pure V2O5 films. Besides, Ce element can enhance the mechanical properties of V2O5 films. With 1.0 at.% Ce, the best mechanical properties of V2O5 films can be obtained, along with the hardness and elastic modulus of 8.66 GPa and 91.80 GPa, respectively.