Nanostructured SnO2-SiO2 glassceramic thin films as electroluminescent material: An impedance spectroscopy analysis

Optically transparent nanostructured SiO2 glassceramics containing a high density of monodispersed nanometer-sized clusters of semiconducting SnO2 have been obtained by phase separation from a sol-gel derived synthesis. Complex impedance spectroscopy analysis has been performed to get information about the conduction mechanisms to understand the electrical behavior of the material. Measurements have been taken with applied bias ranging from +40 V to -40 V and with an alternated voltage signal in the range 20 Hz - 1 MHz and amplitude from 10 mV to 300 mV. An equivalent circuit, based on a metal-oxide-semiconductor model, comprising nanostructuring contributions, allows measurements fitting. Capacity-voltage and conductance-voltage curves have been obtained for each component.