Structure and electrical properties of thin films of copper selenide

Abstract

Electron-diffraction and electron-microscope methods were used to investigate the structure of Cu₂Se films of close to stoichiometric composition. It is shown that in polycrystalline and single-crystal films of thickness >400Å at room temperature, the tetragonal modification is stable, which at temperatures above 400°K is transformed into the cubical modification. In thinner films d<400 Å the cubical modification of copper selenide is stable at room temperature. A sharp peak is observed at 400°K on the temperature dependence of the resistance; this is connected with the phase transition. At room temperature, copper selenide is a degenerate p-type semiconductor with carrier concentration 5 · 10²²–8 · 10²⁰ cm⁻³, depending on the thickness of the film.