Structural, optical and electrochemical properties of TiO2 thin films grown by APCVD method Review Article

Atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition (APCVD) of TiO2 thin films has been achieved onto glass and onto ITO-coated glass substrates, from the reaction of TiCl4 with ethyl acetate (EtOAc). The effect of the synthesis temperature on the optical, structural and electrochemical properties was studied through spectral transmittance, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements. It was established that the TiO2 films deposited onto glass substrate, at temperatures greater than 400 °C grown with rutile type tetragonal structure, whereas the TiO2 films deposited onto ITO-coated glass substrate grown with anatase type structure. EIS was applied as suitable method to determine the charge transfer resistance in the electrolyte/TiO2 interface, typically found in dye-sensitized solar cells.