Sn(1-x)LaxO2 thin films deposited on AISI 304 stainless steel substrates

To minimize the corrosive processes that affect metal structures, this work involved the synthesis of Sn(1-x)LaxO2 ceramic thin film deposited on AISI 304 steel. The polymeric precursor method was used here to obtain resin precursors of Sn(1-x)LaxO2 films with x=1, 3 and 5 mol%. The films were deposited using dip-coating and spin-coating techniques to ensure better packing, and were then heat-treated in a muffle furnace at temperatures of 400, 450 and 500 degrees C for two hours. The SnO2 samples and the organic precursors were morphologically and structurally characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA), Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). These characterizations revealed crack-free, single-phase, dense thin films with good adhesion to the metal substrate in the entire temperature range employed in this study. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l. All rights reserved.