Effect of target properties on transparent conducting impurity-doped ZnO thin films deposited by DC magnetron sputtering

High quality aluminium doped zinc oxide target synthesis from nanoparticulate powder and characterisation of sputtered thin films

“…This is something that other groups have noticed (eg, [10]), and indicates that sputtered were found to display equivalent sheet resistances for a given average transmission value. This demonstrates that AZO synthesised using the conditions described is an ideal alternative to ITO.…”

“…In particular, grain size, density, oxygen content and homogeneity play an important role in the determination of target quality [10]- [14]. Innovonano S.A. has developed a patented nanoparticle-based route for the synthesis of AZO powders [15].…”

Improving the electrical properties of niobium-doped titania sputtering targets by sintering in oxygen-deficient atmospheres

“…In general, only radio-frequency (RF) power can be used for the sputtering of ceramic films because the resistivity of ceramic sputtering targets is quite high. However, various TCO films have been extensively produced by direct-current (DC) sputtering due to the low resistivities of TCO ceramic targets [4,5,7,8]. Ohsaki et al [9] and Sato et al [10] have also indicated that a TiO 2 À x target with a resistivity about 0.3 Ω cm can be used to fabricate TiO 2 and TNO films, respectively, using DC sputtering.…”

“…Recently, the correlations between TCO targets and films and the processes and properties of aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) and gallium-doped zinc oxide (GZO) ceramic targets have received much focus [7,8,11,12]. Several studies have found that the characteristics of sputtering targets affect both the film properties and the sputtering process [4,7,8,13,14].…”

“…Several studies have found that the characteristics of sputtering targets affect both the film properties and the sputtering process [4,7,8,13,14]. Minami et al [7] and Huang et al [8] have demonstrated that an AZO ceramic target with a lower resistivity can be used to manufacture an AZO film with better electrical properties and uniformity. An AZO ceramic target with a lower resistivity can also increase the deposition rate and reduce the arcing phenomenon during sputtering [7].…”