Effect of the growth temperature and oxygen flow rate on the properties of MoO₃ thin films

MoO₃ thin films were deposited on glass substrates at various growth temperatures and oxygen flow rates by radio-frequency reactive magnetron sputtering. The effect of the growth temperature and oxygen flow rate on the structural, morphological, and optical properties of the MoO₃ thin films was investigated. The X-ray diffraction patterns revealed that only the film deposited with an oxygen flow rate of 10% exhibited a monoclinic structure, whereas the other films were amorphous. Energy-dispersive spectrometry analyses revealed that all films were composed of Mo and O. The average optical transmittance was 93% for the wavelength range of 400–1100 nm at a growth temperature of 100 C. The band gap energy and transmittance of the MoO₃ thin films depended significantly on the growth temperature and oxygen flow rate, revealing their importance for growing high-quality MoO₃ thin films.