Investigation of ZnS–SiO2/Ag/ZnS–SiO2 as high stable transparent and conductive multilayer films

Novel transparent conductive ZnS–SiO2/Ag/ZnS–SiO2 multilayer films were prepared on K9 glass substrates by magnetron sputtering at room temperature. The structure of ZnS–SiO2/Ag/ZnS–SiO2 multilayer films were theoretically designed and the optimal thickness of each layer was determined (45 nm/11 nm/45 nm). To obtain better optical and electrical properties, the ZnS–SiO2/Ag/ZnS–SiO2 samples were annealed at various temperatures. The optical, electrical, and structural characteristics of the ZnS–SiO2/Ag/ZnS–SiO2 multilayer films were then investigated. The results show that when the annealing temperature was 200 °C, the sample exhibited a low sheet resistance of 9.7 Ω/sq and a high optical transmittance of 88.4%. For the sample annealed at 200 °C, the average transmittance in the visible range (380–780 nm) was calculated and determined as 84.1%. The effects of humidity and temperature on the samples were assessed by an accelerated aging test. The results demonstrate the high damp heat stability of ZnS–SiO2/Ag/ZnS–SiO2 multilayer films.