作者要感谢马来西亚国民大学研究基金的财政支持：UKM-GGPM-2022-069 进行这项研究。

1. 基材制备
<ol><li>用无绒布擦拭玻璃基材，以去除松散的污垢或碎屑。用水和肥皂清洗玻璃基板，用刷子擦洗玻璃上的任何污垢。</li>
	<li>在烧杯中制备下面列出的所有溶剂，将玻璃基板浸入溶剂中，并在37kHz下相应地超声处理。在80°C下制备甲醇10分钟;丙酮在80°C下10分钟，乙醇在80°C下10分钟，蒸馏（DI）水在80°C下20分钟。 注意： 在通风橱中处理高挥发性化学品。</li>
	<li>用镊子将基材从烧杯中逐个取出，放在干净平坦的表面上，用镊子压住基材，用氮气吹干。</li>
	<li>将底物放在120°C的热板上5-10分钟以蒸发任何残留物。将基材放入紫外线臭氧清洁剂中10分钟。</li>
</ol>2.溅射法
<ol><li>腔室准备<ol><li>从枪上取下铝制护罩，将目标材料放在盖子的中心。拧紧磁控管支架上的盖子，然后放回铝制屏蔽罩。用铝箔盖住腔室、喷枪和样品架的主体。</li>
		<li>通过触摸腔体（短）之间的万用表探头进行短路检查，然后是腔体和枪（短），最后是腔体和目标（打开）。该测试对于确保主体（阳极）和目标（阴极）之间没有电流泄漏是必要的，这会阻碍等离子体的形成。</li>
	</ol></li>
	<li>预溅射<ol><li>关上门并用真空吸尘室吸尘 15 - 30 分钟。在吸尘开始时将门和机身压在一起，以确保门紧闭。确保压力表的读数正在递减。</li>
		<li>打开冷却器系统并设置为 15 °C。 打开泵和制冷按钮，打开与溅射仪表相连的阀门。 注意： 如果没有冷却系统，射频溅射就无法运行。等离子体的形成不会发生。</li>
		<li>将氩气流量设置为 4 sccm 并打开气体拨动开关。等到流量达到设定值。</li>
		<li>将旋转设置为 10 rpm 并打开旋转拨动开关。按 下电源 键打开自动匹配的网络控制器和射频电源。</li>
		<li>在自动匹配网络控制器上，通过按 最小/最大 按钮并将按钮从 手动 按为 自动，将负载和调谐分别设置为 50 W。</li>
		<li>在射频电源上，将射频功率设置为 50 W，然后按 下开始 按钮。将计时器设置为 15 分钟。</li>
		<li>关闭射频电源和旋转。将氩气流量设置为 0 并关闭拨动开关。关闭真空吸尘器。 注意： 等到氩气流量达到 0.1 sccm 后再关闭真空。</li>
		<li>通风以打开腔室。在排气前确保涡轮分子泵 （TMP） 处于关闭状态。TMP 运行时排气会损坏系统。</li>
		<li>打开腔室并加载基板。将基板放在旋转样品架的外角，以便更好地沉积，如 图1所示。 注意： 处理腔室内部时戴上口罩和手套，以避免吸入小颗粒材料。</li>
		<li>如 图 2 所示关闭门并吸尘至少 6 小时。较低的基压可提供更好的沉积效果。高真空系统（如溅射工艺）的最佳基压为 1 x 10-5 Torr。</li>
	</ol></li>
	<li>溅射<ol><li>打开冷却器系统并设置为 15 °C。 打开泵和制冷按钮，打开与溅射仪表相连的阀门。</li>
		<li>将旋转设置为 10 rpm 并打开旋转拨动开关。将氩气流量设置为 4 sccm 并打开气体拨动开关。等到流量达到设定值。</li>
		<li>按 下电源 键打开自动匹配的网络控制器和射频电源。</li>
		<li>在自动匹配网络控制器上，通过按 最小/最大 按钮并将按钮从 手动 按为 自动，将负载和调谐分别设置为 50 W。</li>
		<li>在射频电源上，将射频功率设置为 50 W，然后按 下开始 按钮。 注意： 等到氩气流量达到设定值并变得稳定后再打开射频电源。</li>
		<li>检查腔室中是否存在等离子体。等离子体的形成由腔室中发光的紫色光指示。如果打开射频电源后等离子体不存在，请关闭氩气 10 秒，然后重新打开。 重复直到腔室中形成等离子体。</li>
		<li>以每 10 秒间隔 5 W 逐渐增加射频功率，直到达到 75 W。</li>
	</ol></li>
	<li>溅射后<ol><li>关闭射频电源和旋转。关闭自动匹配网络控制器和射频电源。</li>
		<li>将氩气流量设置为 0 并关闭气体拨动开关。关闭真空吸尘器。 注意： 等到氩气流量达到 0.1 sccm 后再关闭真空。</li>
		<li>通风以打开腔室。通风前确保 TMP 已关闭。TMP 运行时排气会损坏系统。</li>
		<li>用镊子取出所有样品，放入干净的培养皿中。 注意： 处理腔室内部时戴上口罩和手套，以避免吸入小颗粒材料。</li>
		<li>清洁腔室并真空 10 - 15 分钟，以保持腔室处于真空状态（无杂质）。</li>
	</ol></li>
</ol><img alt="Figure 2" class="xfigimg" src="/files/ftp_upload/66248/66248fig02.jpg"> 图 2：实验设置。 本研究中使用的溅射机的照片。 <a href="https://www.jove.com/files/ftp_upload/66248/66248fig02large.jpg" target="_blank">请点击这里查看此图的较大版本.</a>
3. 表征
<ol><li>使用场发射扫描电子显微镜（FESEM，在3.0 kV工作电压下）进行形貌和横截面扫描，以获得溅射膜的表面微观结构细节和厚度。</li>
	<li>使用FESEM附带的能量色散X射线光谱（EDX）数据对薄膜的成分进行计算。在0.57 T的永磁场中测量Sb2Te3 和Bi2Te3的探头电流分别为0.8 mA和10 mA的霍尔电压，以获得薄膜的载流子浓度和电导率35。</li>
	<li>使用 Isotta 等人使用的类似仪器对塞贝克系数进行平面内测量5。将具有大约 2 cm x 1.25 cm 矩形几何形状的样品安装在装置上。根据 Pt 标准测量 2 触点配置中的绝对塞贝克系数，温度梯度为 ≈25 °C。</li>
</ol>

通过射频溅射将 Bi2Te3 和 Sb2Te3 薄膜沉积在玻璃基板上

作者没有什么可透露的。

本文介绍的技术在设置设备和实施方面没有重大困难。但是，需要强调几个关键步骤。如协议的步骤2.2.10所述，最佳真空条件是生产污染较少的高质量薄膜的关键，因为真空可以去除腔室37中的残留氧气。氧气的存在会导致薄膜出现裂纹，称为应力开裂，表明高真空系统在溅射过程中的重要性38。这也减少了原子39 从靶材到基板的运动中与残余...

热电 （TE） 材料通过塞贝克效应1 将热能转化为电能以及通过帕尔帖冷却2 将热能转化为电能的能力吸引了相当多的研究兴趣。TE材料的转换效率由TE支腿的热端和冷端之间的温差决定。一般来说，温差越大，TE的品质因数越高，其效率越高3。TE 在工作过程中不需要额外的机械部件，不会产生任何废物或污染，使其对环境安全，并被视为绿色能源收集系统。
碲化铋、Bi2Te3 及其合金仍然是最重要的一类 TE 材料。即使在热电发电中，例如废热回收，Bi2Te3 合金也因其在高达 200 °C4 的出色效率而最常用，并且尽管各种 TE 材料的 zT 值超过 2，但在环境温度下仍然是一种出色的 TE 材料5。已发表的几篇论文研究了该材料的TE性质，表明化学计量Bi2Te3具有负塞贝克系数6,7,8，表明n型性质。然而，该化合物可以通过分别与碲化锑（Sb2Te3）和硒化铋（Bi2Se3）合金化来调整为p型和n型，这可以增加它们的带隙并减少双极效应9。
碲化锑，Sb2Te3 是另一种成熟的 TE 材料，在低温下具有很高的品质因数。化学计量 Bi2Te3 是具有 n 型特性的出色 TE，而 Sb2Te3 具有 p 型特性。在某些情况下，TE材料的性质往往取决于材料的原子组成，如n型富Te的Bi2Te3，而p型富Bi2Te3由于BiTe抗位受体的缺陷4。然而，由于 SbTe 反位缺陷的形成能相对较低，即使在富 Teb2Te34 中，Sb2Te3 始终是 p 型。 因此，这两种材料成为制造各种应用的热电发电机p-n模块的合适候选者。
目前的常规TEG由n型和p型半导体的切块锭制成，这些铸块以串联10垂直连接。由于效率低下且笨重、刚性强，它们仅用于利基领域。随着时间的流逝，研究人员开始探索薄膜结构，以获得更好的性能和应用。据报道，薄膜TE由于导热系数低11,12、材料量少且更容易与集成电路12集成，因此比其笨重的同类产品（例如更高的zT）具有优势。因此，受益于纳米材料结构的优势，薄膜热电器件的利基TE研究一直在上升13,14。
薄膜的微纳加工对于获得高性能 TE 材料非常重要。为此，已经研究和开发了各种沉积方法，包括化学气相沉积15、原子层沉积16、17、脉冲激光沉积18、19、20、丝网印刷8、21和分子束外延22。然而，这些技术大多存在运营成本高、生长工艺复杂或材料制备复杂等问题。相反，磁控溅射是一种经济高效的方法，用于生产更致密、晶粒尺寸更小、附着力更好、均匀性高的高质量薄膜 23,24,25。
磁控溅射是基于等离子体的物理气相沉积（PVD）工艺之一，广泛应用于各种工业应用。当向靶材（阴极）施加足够的电压时，溅射工艺起作用，来自辉光放电等离子体的离子轰击靶材，不仅释放二次电子，还释放阴极材料的原子，最终影响基板表面并凝结成薄膜。溅射工艺于 1930 年代首次商业化，并于 1960 年代得到改进，由于其能够使用直流 （DC） 和射频溅射沉积各种材料而引起了极大的兴趣26,27。磁控溅射通过利用磁场克服了低沉积速率和高基板加热冲击。强磁体将等离子体中的电子限制在目标表面或附近，并防止损坏形成的薄膜。这种配置保留了沉积薄膜28的化学计量和厚度均匀性。
使用磁控溅射法制备Bi2Te3和Sb2Te3热电薄膜也得到了广泛的研究，在工艺中加入了掺杂4,29,30和退火31等技术，导致不同的性能和质量。Zheng等[32]的研究采用热诱导扩散法扩散了分别溅射的Ag掺杂Bi和Te层。该方法可以精确控制薄膜的成分，并且通过热感应扩散Te可以防止Te挥发。薄膜的性能也可以通过溅射前的预涂层工艺33来增强，由于高载流子迁移率，导致更好的导电性，从而增强功率因数。除此之外，Chen等[34]的研究通过硒化后扩散反应法掺杂Se，提高了溅射Bi2Te3的热电性能。在此过程中，Se 蒸发并扩散到 Bi-Te 薄膜中形成 Bi-Te-Se 薄膜，其功率因数比未掺杂的 Bi2Te3 高 8 倍。
本文介绍了射频磁控溅射技术在玻璃基板上沉积Bi2Te3 和Sb2Te3 薄膜的实验装置和程序。溅射以自上而下的配置进行，如 图1中的原理图所示，阴极与基板法线成一定角度安装，导致基板的等离子体更加集中和收敛。采用FESEM、EDX、霍尔效应和塞贝克系数等方法系统表征薄膜表面形貌、厚度、成分和热电性能。
<img alt="Figure 1" class="xfigimg" src="/files/ftp_upload/66248/66248fig01.jpg"> 图 1：自上而下的配置溅射示意图。 该图的设计符合本研究可用的实际溅射配置，但不是按比例设计的，包括从顶部观察要溅射的玻璃基板的布置。 <a href="https://www.jove.com/files/ftp_upload/66248/66248fig01large.jpg" target="_blank">请点击这里查看此图的较大版本.</a>

<table border="1" fo:keep-together.within-page="1" fo:keep-with-next.within-page="always">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>Acetone</td>
			<td>Chemiz (M) Sdn. Bhd.</td>
			<td>1910151</td>
			<td>Liquid, Flammable</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Antimony Telluride, Sb2Te3</td>
			<td>China Rare Metal Material Co.,Ltd</td>
			<td>C120222-0304</td>
			<td>Diameter 50.8 mm, Thickness 6.35 mm, 99.999% purity</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Bismuth Telluride, Bi2Te3</td>
			<td>China Rare Metal Material Co.,Ltd</td>
			<td>CB151208-0501</td>
			<td>Diameter 50.8 mm, Thickness 4.25 mm, 99.999% purity</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Ethanol</td>
			<td>Chemiz (M) Sdn. Bhd.</td>
			<td>2007081</td>
			<td>Liquid, Flammable</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope</td>
			<td>Zeiss</td>
			<td>MERLIN</td>
			<td>Equipped with EDX</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Hall effect measurement system</td>
			<td>Aseptec Sdn. Bhd.</td>
			<td>HMS ECOPIA 3000</td>
			<td>-</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Handheld digital multimeter</td>
			<td>Prokits Industries Sdn. Bhd.</td>
			<td>303-150NCS</td>
			<td>-</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>HMS-3000</td>
			<td>Aseptec Sdn Bhd.</td>
			<td>HMS ECOPIA 3000</td>
			<td>Hall effect measurement software</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Linseis_TA</td>
			<td>Linseis Messger&#228;te GmbH</td>
			<td>LSR-3</td>
			<td>Linseis thermal analysis software</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Methanol</td>
			<td>Chemiz (M) Sdn. Bhd.</td>
			<td>2104071</td>
			<td>Liquid, Flammable</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>RF-DC magnetron sputtering</td>
			<td>Kurt J. Lesker Company</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>Customized hybrid system</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Seebeck coefficient measurement system</td>
			<td>Linseis Messger&#228;te GmbH</td>
			<td>LSR-3</td>
			<td>-</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>SmartTiff</td>
			<td>Carl Zeiss Microscopy Ltd</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>SEM image thickness measurement software</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Ultrasonic bath</td>
			<td>Fisherbrand</td>
			<td>FB15055</td>
			<td>-</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>UV ozone cleaner</td>
			<td>Ossila Ltd</td>
			<td>L2002A3-UK</td>
			<td>-</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

fabrication of bi2te3 and sb2te3 thermoelectric thin films using radio frequency magnetron sputtering technique

通过对热电 （TE） 材料的各种研究，薄膜配置比传统的块状 TE 具有优越的优势，包括对弯曲和柔性基板的适应性。已经探索了几种不同的薄膜沉积方法，但磁控溅射由于其高沉积效率和可扩展性而仍然具有优势。因此，本研究旨在通过射频（RF）磁控溅射法制备碲化铋（Bi2Te3）和碲化锑（Sb2Te3）薄膜。薄膜在环境温度下沉积在钠钙玻璃基板上。首先用水和肥皂洗涤基材，用甲醇、丙酮、乙醇和去离子水超声清洗10 min，用氮气和热板干燥，最后在UV臭氧下处理10 min，去除残留物后再进行涂布工艺。使用带有氩气的 Bi2Te3 和 Sb2Te3 溅射靶材，并进行预溅射以清洁靶材表面。然后，将一些干净的基板装入溅射室，并对溅射室进行真空吸尘，直到压力达到 2 x 10-5 Torr。薄膜沉积60 min，氩气流量为4 sccm，射频功率分别为75 W和30 W，Bi2Te3 和Sb2Te3。该方法产生了高度均匀的n型Bi2Te3 和p型Sb2Te3 薄膜。

Thermoelectric (TE) materials have been attracting a considerable amount of research interest regarding their ability to convert thermal energy into electricity via the Seebeck effect1 and refrigeration via Peltier cooling2. The conversion efficiency of TE material is determined by the temperature difference between the hot end of the TE leg and the cold end. Generally, the higher the temperature difference, the higher the TE figure of merit and the higher its efficiency3. TE works with no requirement for additional mechanical parts involving gas or liquid in its process, producing no waste or pollution, making it environmentally safe and considered a green energy harvesting system.
Bismuth telluride, Bi2Te3, and its alloys remain the most important class of TE material. Even in thermoelectric power generation, such as the recovery of waste heat, Bi2Te3 alloys are most commonly used due to their superior efficiency up to 200 &#176;C4 and remain an excellent TE material at ambient temperature despite the zT value of more than 2 in various TE materials5. Several published papers have studied the TE properties of this material, which shows that the stoichiometric Bi2Te3 has a negative Seebeck coefficient6,7,8, indicating n-type properties. However, this compound can be adjusted to p- and n-type by alloying with antimony telluride (Sb2Te3) and bismuth selenide (Bi2Se3), respectively, which can increase their bandgap and reduce bipolar effects9.
Antimony telluride, Sb2Te3 is another well-established TE material with high figure of merit at low temperature. While stoichiometric Bi2Te3 is a great TE with n-type properties, Sb2Te3 has p-type properties. In some cases, the properties of TE materials often depend on the atomic composition of the material such as the n-type Te-rich Bi2Te3, but a p-type Bi-rich Bi2Te3 due to BiTe antisite acceptor defects4. However, Sb2Te3 is always p-type due to comparatively low formation energy of SbTe antisite defects, even in Te-rich Sb2Te34. Thus, these two materials become suitable candidates to fabricate p-n module of thermoelectric generator for various applications.
The current conventional TEGs are made of diced ingots of n-type and p-type semiconductors connected vertically in series10. They have only been used in niche fields due to their low efficiency and bulky, rigid nature. Over time, researchers have started to explore thin film structures for better performance and application. It is reported that thin film TE have advantages over their bulky counterpart such as higher zT due to their low thermal conductivity11,12, less amount of material and easier integration with integrated circuit12. As a result, niche TE research on thin film thermoelectric devices has been on the rise benefitting from the advantages of nanomaterial structure13,14.
Microfabrication of thin film is important to attain high performance TE materials. Various deposition approaches have been researched and developed including chemical vapor deposition15, atomic layer deposition16,17, pulsed laser deposition18,19,20, screen printing8,21, and molecular beam epitaxy22 to serve this purpose. However, the majority of these techniques suffer from high operation cost, complex growth process or complicated material preparation. On the contrary, magnetron sputtering is a cost-effective approach for producing high-quality thin films that are denser, exhibit smaller grain size, have better adhesion, and high uniformity23,24,25.
Magnetron sputtering is one of the plasma-based physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes which is widely used in various industrial applications. Sputtering process works when sufficient voltage is applied to a target (cathode), ions from the glow discharge plasma bombards the target and release not only secondary electrons, but also atoms of the cathode materials which eventually impact the surface of the substrate and condense as a thin film. Sputtering process was first commercialized in 1930s and improved in 1960s, gaining significant interest due to its ability to deposit wide range of materials using direct current (DC) and RF sputtering26,27. The magnetron sputtering overcomes low deposition rate and high substrate heating impact by utilizing magnetic field. The strong magnet confines the electrons in the plasma at or near the surface of the target and prevent damage to the formed thin film. This configuration preserves the stoichiometry and thickness uniformity of the deposited thin film28.
The preparation of Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 thermoelectric thin films using magnetron sputtering method has also been extensively studied, incorporating technique such as doping4,29,30 and annealing31 in the procedures, leading to different performance and quality. Study by Zheng et al.32 uses thermally induced diffusion method to diffuse Ag-doped Bi and Te layer which were sputtered separately. This method enables precise control on the composition of the thin films and the diffusion of Te by thermal induction protects the Te from being volatilized. The properties of the thin films can also be enhanced by pre-coating process33 before sputtering which results in better electrical conductivity due to high carrier mobility, consequently enhancing the power factor. Other than that, study by Chen et al.34 improved the thermoelectric performance of sputtered Bi2Te3 by doping Se via post-selenization diffusion reaction method. During the process, Se vaporizes and diffuses into the Bi-Te thin films to form Bi-Te-Se films, which results in 8-fold higher power factor than undoped Bi2Te3.
This paper describes our experimental setup and procedure for the RF magnetron sputtering technique to deposit Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 thin films on glass substrates. Sputtering was performed in a top-down configuration as shown in the schematic diagram in Figure 1, cathode was mounted at an angle to the substrate normal, leading to a more concentrated and convergent plasma to the substrate. The films were systematically characterized using FESEM, EDX, Hall effect and Seebeck coefficient measurement to study their surface morphology, thickness, composition, and thermoelectric properties.
<img alt="Figure 1" class="xfigimg" src="/files/ftp_upload/66248/66248fig01.jpg" /> 
Figure 1: A schematic of the top-down configuration sputter. The diagram was designed according, but not to scale, to the actual sputtering configuration available for this study including the arrangement of glass substrates to be sputtered viewed from the top. <a href="https://www.jove.com/files/ftp_upload/66248/66248fig01large.jpg" target="_blank">Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.</a>

作者聚焦：通过射频磁控溅射实现高性能热电薄膜的进展

使用射频磁控溅射技术制备Bi2Te3 和Sb2Te3 热电薄膜

Our research focuses on fabricating high-quality thin films for thermoelectric generators to recover waste heat and turn it into electricity. Various thin film deposition technique have been researched and developed, including radio frequency magnetron sputtering that is able to produce high-density, robust thin films with better adhesion and high uniformity. This method does not require melting and evaporation of the target materials, enabling most of materials to be deposited regardless of their melting temperature, making it superior than other physical vapor deposition technologies.

使用FESEM记录沉积的Bi2Te3 和Sb2Te3 薄膜的横截面显微照片，分别如 图3A 和 图3B所示。整片表面显得均匀光滑。很明显，Bi2Te3 薄膜的晶粒是六边形的，符合Bi2Te3 的晶体结构，而Sb2Te3 薄膜的晶粒由细小的圆形晶粒组成，与Amirghasemi等人36报道的相似。两个?...

该手稿描述了一种在玻璃基板上对Bi2Te3 和Sb2Te3 热电薄膜进行射频磁控溅射的协议，该协议代表了一种可靠的沉积方法，具有广泛的应用潜力，并具有进一步发展的潜力。

Through various studies on thermoelectric (TE) materials, thin film configuration gives superior advantages over conventional bulk TEs, including ...

我们的研究重点是制造用于热电发电机的高质量薄膜，以回收废热并将其转化为电能。已经研究和开发了各种薄膜沉积技术，包括射频磁控溅射，能够生产出具有更好附着力和高均匀性的高密度、坚固的薄膜。这种方法不需要对目标材料进行熔化和蒸发，使大多数材料无论熔化温度如何都可以沉积，因此优于其他物理气相沉积技术。

fabrication-bi2te3-sb2te3-thermoelectric-thin-films-using-radio

Research

JoVE Journal

Engineering

Fabrication of Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 Thermoelectric Thin Films using Radio Frequency Magnetron Sputtering Technique

1.8K 次观看.  Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. 我们的研究重点是制造用于热电发电机的高质量薄膜，以回收废热并将其转化为电能。已经研究和开发了各种薄膜沉积技术，包括射频磁控溅射，能够生产出具有更好附着力和高均匀性的高密度、坚固的薄膜。这种方法不需要对目标材料进行熔化和蒸发，使大多数材料无论熔化温度如何都可以沉积，因此优于其他物理气相沉积技术。

视频: 作者聚焦：通过射频磁控溅射实现高性能热电薄膜的进展

Through various studies on thermoelectric (TE) materials, thin film configuration gives superior advantages over conventional bulk TEs, including adaptability to curved and flexible substrates. Several different thin film deposition methods have been explored, yet magnetron sputtering is still favorable due to its high deposition efficiency and scalability. Therefore, this study aims to fabricate a bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3) and antimony telluride (Sb2Te3) thin film via the radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering method. The thin films were deposited on soda lime glass substrates at ambient temperature. The substrates were first washed using water and soap, ultrasonically cleaned with methanol, acetone, ethanol, and deionized water for 10 min, dried with nitrogen gas and hot plate, and finally treated under UV ozone for 10 min to remove residues before the coating process. A sputter target of Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 with Argon gas was used, and pre-sputtering was done to clean the target&#39;s surface. Then, a few clean substrates were loaded into the sputtering chamber, and the chamber was vacuumed until the pressure reached 2 x 10-5 Torr. The thin films were deposited for 60 min with Argon flow of 4 sccm and RF power at 75 W and 30 W for Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3, respectively. This method resulted in highly uniform n-type Bi2Te3 and p-type Sb2Te3 thin films.

The manuscript describes a protocol for radio frequency magnetron sputtering of Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 thermoelectric thin films on glass substrates, which represents a reliable deposition method that provides a wide range of applications with the potential for further development.