Substrate Temperature Dependence of Transparent Conducting Al-Doped ZnO Thin Films Prepared by Magnetron Sputtering

Abstract

A technique is demonstrated that improves the substrate spatial distributions of resistivity and film thickness of transparent conducting oxide thin films prepared using a conventional dc planar magnetron sputtering method. The spatial distributions of Al-doped ZnO (AZO) films are markedly improved by deposition onto substrates at temperatures above 300°C. Large-area AZO films with a resisitivity of 3-6×10-4 Ω·cm can be produced at a substrate temperature of 350°C.