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Preparation of epitaxial films of the transparent conductive oxide Al: Z n O by reactive high‐pressure sputtering in Ar/ O 2 mixtures
Author(s) -
Van Gompel M.,
Conings B.,
Jiménez Monroy K. L.,
D‘Haen J.,
Gilissen K.,
D‘Olieslaeger M.,
Van Bael M. K.,
Wagner P.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
physica status solidi (a)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.532
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1862-6319
pISSN - 1862-6300
DOI - 10.1002/pssa.201200986
Subject(s) - sputtering , x ray photoelectron spectroscopy , materials science , sapphire , electrical resistivity and conductivity , thin film , epitaxy , oxide , transparent conducting film , analytical chemistry (journal) , diffraction , chemical engineering , nanotechnology , optics , chemistry , layer (electronics) , metallurgy , laser , physics , electrical engineering , chromatography , engineering
Transparent conductive metal oxides are interesting materials for various optoelectronic applications including solar cells and flat panel displays. This study focuses on the in situ deposition of aluminum‐doped zinc oxide (AZO) thin layers on c ‐axis oriented sapphire substrates by dc sputtering and on the structural and electrical characterization. The films have a typical thickness of 90 nm and a roughness of 10 nm root mean square. An Al/Zn ratio of 2.4 at% Al was determined by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. X‐ray diffraction shows a preferential growth in the (0002) c ‐axis direction. Films have an average transparency of 90% in the visible‐light spectrum, a room‐temperature resistivity of 3.7 × 10 −3 Ω cm and a carrier mobility of 6.7 cm 2 V −1 s −1 .