The 14th Global Conference on Materials Science and Engineering
(CMSE 2025)

Abstract: Transparent electronic devices with tunable optical functionality require materials that combine high optical clarity with electrically controllable properties. In this study, we demonstrate aluminium nitride (AlN) thin films deposited by low-temperature plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) at 300°C as a promising alternative for UV-transparent electronics. The 50 nm AlN films, characterized by X-ray diffraction as predominantly amorphous with smooth surface morphology, exhibit excellent dielectric properties with low leakage currents in metal-insulator-metal structures on both ITO/glass and TiN/Si substrates.

We found optical transmittance measurements to reveal exceptional UV transparency reaching 90% at 282 nm, coupled with remarkable field-tunable absorption. Under applied electric fields of 200 MV/m, optical modulation exceeds 50% in the deep-UV region while remaining negligible in the visible spectrum. Quantitative analysis indicates an electro-absorption coefficient of ~6×10^-5 cm·m/V, which we attribute to field-tunable defect states rather than conventional electro-optic mechanisms. These findings demonstrate that defect-engineered amorphous AlN enables electrically controllable UV transparency, opening new possibilities for next-generation transparent electronics and multifunctional optoelectronic devices.

Keywords: Thin film, atomic layer deposition, high-k, optical transmittance.

Biography: Dr. Jangyong Kim is currently working for Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU) as an Associate Professor. He received Ph.D. degree in Solid State Electronics from the Department of Microelectronics and Applied Physics at Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Sweden (2007). He did postdoctoral research works in the Department of Micro- and Nanotechnology at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) for MEMS (2008-2009), the Department of Applied Physics at Aalto University for multiferroic materials (2010-2012), and the Condensed Matter Physics Group at the University of Leeds for superconducting spintronics (2012-2015). He was working as a senior researcher in the Center for Biomolecular Nanotechnologies at Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) for transparent electronics (2015-2019), the Institute for Integrated Micro and Nano Systems at the University of Edinburgh for memristors. (2022-2024), and as a research professor in the school of Information Science and Technology at ShanghaiTech University (2019-2022). He presided over and participated in a number of national and international scientific research projects, and published more than 30 articles in internationally refereed journals and presented to international conferences and seminars.

His research interest is in the development of advanced functional thin films of materials with broad range of applications with interdisciplinary field which includes ceramic synthesis, thin film growth technology, lithographic processing solutions with micro- and nanofabrication (MEMS/NEMS), nano-scale engineering, bioelectronics, sensors, RF & microwaves, nanoelectronics, memory technologies, metamaterials, ferroelectric/dielectrics, semiconductors, superconductors, spintronics, and applying fundamental knowledge from nanoscience in scientific instrumentation, in-line material characterization and modifications. He is currently working on developing a MEMS based sensing devices with nano-fabrication and characterization of advanced functional electronic materials.