Deposition of thin ZnO films and parameter optimization for device production

Thin ZnO films were deposited at room temperature on glass and silicon substrates by a pulsed filtered cathodic vacuum arc deposition system. The crystallographic structure and the size of the crystallites in the films were studied by means of x-ray diffraction. These measurements show that all the films are crystallized in the wurtzite form, present in a preferred orientation along the (002) direction. Optical properties of the ZnO films were studied using a UV?visible spectrometer and calculations made using the envelope method. The absorption coefficient and optical band gap of the films were increased while the refractive index was decreased by annealing. The best annealing temperature for pulsed cathodic vacuum arc deposition grown ZnO thin films on glass substrates was found to be 600 °C from optical properties. The effects of oxygen pressure and thickness on the structural, optical and electrical properties of high quality transparent conductive ZnO thin films were studied in detail. With increasing oxygen pressure and film thickness, structure, optical and electrical properties of films were changed. Average transmittance was found about 90% in the visible region for the ZnO thin films. Key Words: ZnO, Cathodic Vacuum Arc Deposition System, Optical, Structural and Electrical Properties