Highly Conducting Transparent Indium-Doped Zinc Oxide Thin Films

Abstract

Highly conducting transparent indium-doped zinc oxide (IZO) thin films have been achieved by controlling different growth parameters using radio frequency magnetron sputtering. The structural, electrical, and optical properties of the IZO thin films have been investigated for varied indium content and growth temperature (TG) in order to find out the optimum level of doping to achieve the highest conducting transparent IZO thin films. The highest mobility and carrier concentration of 11.5 cm2/V-s and 3.26 × 1020 cm−3, respectively, have been achieved in IZO doped with 2% indium. It has been shown that as TG of the 2% IZO thin films increase, more and more indium atoms are substituted into Zn sites leading to shift in (002) peaks towards higher angles which correspond to releasing the stress within the IZO thin film. The minimum resistivity of 5.3 × 10−4 Ω-cm has been achieved in 2% indium-doped IZO grown at 700°C.