Structural, Surface Morphology and Optical Properties of Pulsed Laser Deposited ZnO Thin Films at Various Laser Pulse Energies

Abstract

Abstract. ZnO thin films have been deposited on ITO substrates by pulsed laser deposition at various laser pulse energies. The crystalline structure, surface morphology and optical properties of ZnO thin films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscope (AFM) and UV-Visible measurements. The results showed that ZnO thin films grew along with (002) preferential orientation and had optimal crystalline quality when laser pulse energy kept in 180mJ·P -1 . In addition, the films had smooth surface and compacted structure. Laser pulse energy had little influence on the transmittance of ZnO thin films in visible light region and the transmittance of all the ZnO thin films is above 80%. It also can be found that the film thickness and optical band gap increased with the increase of laser pulse energy from 150mJ·P -1 to 200mJ·P -1 .