Fabrication of Highly Conductive Carbon-Doped Cadmium Oxides Based on a Simple Annealing Method

Abstract

A highly conductive carbon-doped cadmium oxide (CdO) has been fabricated by a catalyst free, compatible and low-cost one-step technique using an annealing method. In the process, the cadmium acetate was used directly as a precursor, and no further assistance from chemicals, multiple steps or instruments was needed. The morphology and phase identification were confirmed by x-ray diffraction, x-ray photoelectron and Raman spectroscopy analyses. From the analyses, it was confirmed that the carbons are inserted at the vacant oxygen sites of the prepared CdO, and the Cd-C linking bridges play a significant role in increasing the electrical conductivity. The thin film prepared by the fabricated CdO showed an excellent electrical conductivity of 858.51 S/cm, suggesting that a highly conductive CdO material fabricated by a simple annealing method can serve as a good electrical conductor material. The thin film fabricated from the carbon-doped CdO material can be used for electrical applications such as solar cells, photo transistors, photo diodes and super capacitors.