Microhardness Studies of Doped Cadmium Sulphide Thin films

Microhardness studies of thin films of doped cadmium sulphide are grown from aqueous solution at temperature of 280°C by spray pyrolysis technique. The films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD). It reveals that the films are of polycrystalline nature with grain size in the order of microns. In this work micro hardness value is found using Vicker's indenter unit. Based on Oliver-Pharr theory and indentation data young's modulus and reduced modulus of the film was estimated. Indentation image reveals that the diagonal length is proportional to the applied load. Mayer's index number is found to be 1.6; suggesting that the films were moderately harder and SEM studies indicate that the grain is uniformly distributed throughout the sample area