Sputtered ZnO film on aluminium foils for flexible ultrasonic transducers

Nanocrystalline ZnO films with both C-axis vertical grown and inclined angled grown were sputter-deposited onto aluminium foils (50 μm thick) and characterised for using as flexible ultrasonic transducers. As-deposited C-axis grown ZnO films were annealed at different temperatures up to 600 °C to enhance film crystallinity and reduce film stress. The C-axis grown ZnO film on the Al foil were bonded onto steel plates, and the pulse-echo tests verified a good performance (with dominant longitudinal waves) of the ultrasonic transducers made from both as-deposited and post-annealed films. Inclined angled ZnO films on the Al foil glued onto steel plates generated mixed shear and longitudinal waves in the pulse-echo test.