ZnO/Cu/ZnO (ZCZ) thin films were deposited at room temperature on a glass substrate using direct current (DC) and radio frequency (RF, 13.56 MHz) magnetron sputtering and then the effect of post-deposition electron irradiation on the structural, optical, electrical and transparent heater properties of the films were considered. ZCZ films that were electron beam irradiated at 500 eV showed an increase in the grain sizes of their ZnO(102) and (201) planes to 15.17 nm and 11.51 nm, respectively, from grain sizes of 13.50 nm and 10.60 nm observed in the as deposited films. In addition, the film’s optical and electrical properties also depended on the electron irradiation energies. The highest opto-electrical performance was observed in films electron irradiated at 500 eV. In a heat radiation test, when a bias voltage of 18 V was applied to the film that had been electron irradiated at 500 eV, its steady state temperature was about 90.5 °C. In a repetition test, it reached the steady state temperature within 60 s at all bias voltages.

ZnO thin-films are grown on a p-Si(111) substrate by RF sputtering. The effects of growth temperature and O2 mixture ratio on the ZnO films are investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and roomtemperature photoluminescence (PL) measurements. All the grown ZnO thin films show a strong preferred orientation along the c-axis, with an intense ultraviolet emission centered at 377 nm. However, when O2 is mixed with the sputtering gas, the half width at half maximum (FWHM) of the XRD peak increases and the deep-level defect-related emission PL band becomes pronounced. In addition, an n-ZnO/p-Si heterojunction diode is fabricated by photolithographic processes and characterized using its current-voltage (I-V) characteristic curve and photoresponsivity. The fabricated n-ZnO/p-Si heterojunction diode exhibits typical rectifying I-V characteristics, with turn-on voltage of about 1.1 V and ideality factor of 1.7. The ratio of current density at ± 3 V of the reverse and forward bias voltage is about 5.8 × 103, which demonstrates the switching performance of the fabricated diode. The photoresponse of the diode under illumination of chopped with 40 Hz white light source shows fast response time and recovery time of 0.5 msec and 0.4 msec, respectively.

Li-incorporated ZnO thin films were deposited by using ultrasonic-assisted spray pyrolysis deposition (SPD) system. To investigate the effect of Li-incorporation on the performance of ZnO thin films, the structural, electrical, and optical properites of the ZnO thin films were analyzed by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emssion scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Hall effect measurement, and UV-Vis spectrophotometry with variation of the Li concentraion in the ZnO sources. Without incorporation of Li element, the ZnO surface showed large spiral domains. As the Li content increases, the size of spiral domains decreased gradually, and finally formed mixed small grain and one-dimensional nanorod-like structures on the surface. This morphological evolution was explained based on an anti-surfactant effect of Li atoms on the ZnO growth surface. In addition, the Li-incorporation changed the optical and electrical properties of the ZnO thin films by modifying the crystalline defect structures by doping effects.

We investigated the effect of ZnO buffer layer on the formation of ZnO thin film by ultrasonic assisted spray pyrolysis deposition. ZnO buffer layer was formed by wet solution method, which was repeated several times. Structural and optical properties of the ZnO thin films deposited on the ZnO buffer layers with various cycles and at various temperatures were investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and photoluminescence spectrum analysis. The structural investigations showed that three-dimensional island shaped ZnO was formed on the bare Si substrate without buffer layers, while two-dimensional ZnO thin film was deposited on the ZnO buffer layers. In addition, structural and optical investigations showed that the crystalline quality of ZnO thin film was improved by introducing the buffer layers. This improvement was attributed to the modulation of the surface energy of the Si surface by the ZnO buffer layer, which finally resulted in a modification of the growth mode from three to two-dimensional.

ZnO with wurtzite structure has a wide band gap of 3.37 eV. Because ZnO has a direct band gap and a large exciton binding energy, it has higher optical efficiency and thermal stability than the GaN material of blue light emitting devices. To fabricate ZnO devices with optical and thermal advantages, n-type and p-type doping are needed. Many research groups have devoted themselves to fabricating stable p-type ZnO. In this study, As+ ion was implanted using an ion implanter to fabricate p-type ZnO. After the ion implant, rapid thermal annealing (RTA) was conducted to activate the arsenic dopants. First, the structural and optical properties of the ZnO thin films were investigated for as-grown, as-implanted, and annealed ZnO using FE-SEM, XRD, and PL, respectively. Then, the structural, optical, and electrical properties of the ZnO thin films, depending on the As ion dose variation and the RTA temperatures, were analyzed using the same methods. In our experiment, p-type ZnO thin films with a hole concentration of 1.263 × 1018 cm−3 were obtained when the dose of 5 × 1014 As ions/cm2 was implanted and the RTA was conducted at 850 oC for 1 min.

To observe the formation of defects at the interface between an oxide semiconductor and SiO2, ZnO was preparedon SiO2 with various oxygen gas flow rates by RF magnetron sputtering deposition. The crystallinity of ZnO depends on thecharacteristic of the surface of the substrate. The crystallinity of ZnO on a Si wafer increased due to the activation of ionicinteractions after an annealing process, whereas that of ZnO on SiO2 changed due to the various types of defects which hadformed as a result of the deposition conditions and the annealing process. To observe the chemical shift to understand of defectdeformations at the interface between the ZnO and SiO2, the O 1s electron spectra were convoluted into three sub-peaks bya Gaussian fitting. The O 1s electron spectra consisted of three peaks as metal oxygen (at 530.5eV), O2− ions in an oxygen-deficient region (at 531.66eV) and OH bonding (at 532.5eV). In view of the crystallinity from the peak (103) in the XRDpattern, the metal oxygen increased with a decrease in the crystallinity. However, the low FWHM (full width at half maximum)at the (103) plane caused by the high crystallinity depended on the increment of the oxygen vacancies at 531.66eV due tothe generation of O2− ions in the oxygen-deficient region formed by thermal activation energy.

ZnO thin films co-doped with Mg and Ga (MxGyZzO, x+y+z=1, x=0.05, y=0.02 and z=0.93) were preparedon glass substrates by RF magnetron sputtering with different sputtering powers ranging from 100W to 200W at a substratetemperature of 350oC. The effects of the sputtering power on the structural, morphological, electrical, and optical propertiesof MGZO thin films were investigated. The X-ray diffraction patterns showed that all the MGZO thin films were grown asa hexagonal wurtzite phase with the preferred orientation on the c-axis without secondary phases such as MgO, Ga2O3, orZnGa2O4. The intensity of the diffraction peak from the (0002) plane of the MGZO thin films was enhanced as the sputteringpower increased. The (0002) peak positions of the MGZO thin films was shifted toward, a high diffraction angle as thesputtering power increased. Cross-sectional field emission scanning electron microscopy images of the MGZO thin filmsshowed that all of these films had a columnar structure and their thickness increased with an increase in the sputtering power.MGZO thin film deposited at the sputtering power of 200W showed the best electrical characteristics in terms of the carrierconcentration (4.71×1020cm−3), charge carrier mobility (10.2cm2V−1s−1) and a minimum resistivity (1.3×10−3Ωcm). A UV-visible spectroscopy assessment showed that the MGZO thin films had high transmittance of more than 80% in the visibleregion and that the absorption edges of MGZO thin films were very sharp and shifted toward the higher wavelength side, from270nm to 340nm, with an increase in the sputtering power. The band-gap energy of MGZO thin films was widened from3.74eV to 3.92eV with the change in the sputtering power.

ZnO thin films were grown on a sapphire substrate by RF magnetron sputtering. The characteristics of the thin films were investigated by ellipsometry, X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), photoluminescence (PL), and Hall effect. The substrate temperature and growth time were kept constant at 200˚C at 30 minutes, respectively. The RF power was varied within the range of 200 to 500 W. ZnO thin films on sapphire substrate were grown with a preferred C-axis orientation along the (0002) plan; X-ray diffraction peak shifted to low angles and PL emission peak was red-shifted with increasing RF power. In addition, the electrical characteristics of the carrier density and mobility decreased and the resistivity increased. In the electrical and optical properties of ZnO thin films under variation of RF power, the crystallinity improved and the roughness increased with increasing RF power due to decreased oxygen vacancies and the presence of excess zinc above the optimal range of RF power. Consequently, the crystallinity of the ZnO thin films grown on sapphire substrate was improved with RF sputtering power; however, excess Zn resulted because of the structural, electrical, and optical properties of the ZnO thin films. Thus, excess RF power will act as a factor that degrades the device characteristics.

ZnO thin films were prepared on a glass substrate by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering without intentional substrate heating and then surfaces of the ZnO films were irradiated with intense electrons in vacuum condition to investigate the effect of electron bombardment on crystallization, surface roughness, morphology and hydrogen gas sensitivity. In XRD pattern, as deposited ZnO films show a higher ZnO (002) peak intensity. However, the peak intensity for ZnO (002) is decreased with increase of electron bombarding energy. Atomic force microscope images show that surface morphology is also dependent on electron bombarding energy. The surface roughness increases due to intense electron bombardment as high as 2.7 nm. The observed optical transmittance means that the films irradiated with intense electron beams at 900 eV show lower transmittance than the others due to their rough surfaces. In addition, ZnO films irradiated by the electron beam at 900 eV show higher hydrogen gas sensitivity than the films that were electron beam irradiated at 450 eV. From XRD pattern and atomic force microscope observations, it is supposed that intense electron bombardment promotes a rough surface due to the intense bombardments and increased gas sensitivity of ZnO films for hydrogen gas. These results suggest that ZnO films irradiated with intense electron beams are promising for practical high performance hydrogen gas sensors.

We investigated the carbon monoxide (CO) gas-sensing properties of nanostructured Al-doped zinc oxide thin films deposited on self-assembled Au nanodots (ZnO/Au thin films). The Al-doped ZnO thin film was deposited onto the structure by rf sputtering, resulting in a gas-sensing element comprising a ZnO-based active layer with an embedded Pt/Ti electrode covered by the self-assembled Au nanodots. Prior to the growth of the active ZnO layer, the Au nanodots were formed via annealing a thin Au layer with a thickness of 2 nm at a moderate temperature of 500˚C. It was found that the ZnO/Au nanostructured thin film gas sensors showed a high maximum sensitivity to CO gas at 250˚C and a low CO detection limit of 5 ppm in dry air. Furthermore, the ZnO/Au thin film CO gas sensors exhibited fast response and recovery behaviors. The observed excellent CO gas-sensing properties of the nanostructured ZnO/Au thin films can be ascribed to the Au nanodots, acting as both a nucleation layer for the formation of the ZnO nanostructure and a catalyst in the CO surface reaction. These results suggest that the ZnO thin films deposited on self-assembled Au nanodots are promising for practical high-performance CO gas sensors.

ZnO wire-like thin films were synthesized through thermal oxidation of sputtered Zn metal films in dry air. Their nanostructure was confirmed by SEM, revealing a wire-like structure with a width of less than 100 nm and a length of several microns. The gas sensors using ZnO wire-like films were found to exhibit excellent H2 gas sensing properties. In particular, the observed high sensitivity and fast response to H2 gas at a comparatively low temperature of 200˚C would lead to a reduction in the optimal operating temperature of ZnO-based H2 gas sensors. These features, together with the simple synthesis process, demonstrate that ZnO wire-like films are promising for fabrication of low-cost and high-performance H2 gas sensors operable at low temperatures. The relationship between the sensor sensitivity and H2 gas concentration suggests that the adsorbed oxygen species at the surface is O-.

ZnO thin film was grown on a sapphire single crystal substrate by plasma assisted molecular beamepitaxy. In addition to near band edge (NBE) emissions, both blue and green luminescences are also observedtogether. The PL intensity of the blue luminescence (BL) range from 2.7 to 2.9eV increased as the amountof activated oxygen increased, but green luminescence (GL) was weakly observed at about 2.4eV without muchchange in intensity. This result is quite unlike previous studies in which BL and GL were regarded as thetransition between shallow donor levels such as oxygen vacancy and interstitial zinc. Based on the transitionlevel and formation energy of the ZnO intrinsic defects predicted through the first principle calculation, whichemploys density functional approximation (DFA) revised by local density approximation (LDA) and the LDA+Uapproach, the green and blue luminescence are nearly coincident with the transition from the conduction bandto zinc vacancies of V2-Zn and V-Zn, respectively.

Changes in the surface morphology and light scattering of textured Al doped ZnO thin films on glasssubstrates prepared by rf magnetron sputtering were investigated. As-deposited ZnO:Al films show a hightransmittance of above 80% in the visible range and a low electrical resistivity of 4.5×10-4Ω·cm. The surfacemorphology of textured ZnO:Al films are closely dependent on the deposition parameters of heater temperature,working pressure, and etching time in the etching process. The optimized surface morphology with a cratershape is obtained at a heater temperature of 350oC, working pressure of 0.5 mtorr, and etching time of 45seconds. The optical properties of light transmittance, haze, and angular distribution function (ADF) aresignificantly affected by the resulting surface morphologies of textured films. The film surfaces, havinguniformly size-distributed craters, represent good light scattering properties of high haze and ADF values.Compared with commercial Asahi U (SnO2:F) substrates, the suitability of textured ZnO:Al films as frontelectrode material for amorphous silicon thin film solar cells is also estimated with respect to electrical andoptical properties.

The effects of the deposition and annealing temperature on the structural, electrical and opticalproperties of Ag doped ZnO (ZnO:Ag) thin films were investigated. All of the films were deposited with a 2wt%Ag2O-doped ZnO target using an e-beam evaporator. The substrate temperature varied from room temperature(RT) to 250oC. An undoped ZnO thin film was also fabricated at 150oC as a reference. The as-grown films wereannealed in temperatures ranging from 350 to 650oC for 5h in air. The Ag content in the film decreased asthe deposition and the post-annealing temperature increased due to the evaporation of the Ag in the film.During the annealing process, grain growth occurred, as confirmed from XRD and SEM results. The as-grownfilm deposited at RT showed n-type conduction; however, the films deposited at higher temperatures showedp-type conduction. The films fabricated at 150oC revealed the highest hole concentration of 3.98×1019cm-3 anda resistivity of 0.347Ω·cm. The RT PL spectra of the as-grown ZnO:Ag films exhibited very weak emissionintensity compared to undoped ZnO; moreover, the emission intensities became stronger as the annealingtemperature increased with two main emission bands of near band-edge UV and defect-related greenluminescence exhibited. The film deposited at 150oC and annealed at 350oC exhibited the lowest value of Ivis/Iuv of 0.05.