Growth and characterization of indium tin oxide films grown on polymer substrates by DC magnetron sputtering

Thin films of indium tin oxide (ITO) have been deposited on unheated polymer substrates by the DC magnetron sputtering technique. The sheet resistance of the films increased with time on exposure to atmosphere for stretched and cast acrylic substrates which was not seen in the case of polycarbonate substrate. The scanning electron microscopy studies carried out on these films corroborated the result. The transmission of the films was similar to80% in the visible region for all the films. The X-ray diffraction pattern in all the three cases showed preferred orientation of In2O3 in the (440) planes.