Abstract
In the present work, we have deposited Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) thin films by magnetron sputtering technique using nanocrystalline particles elaborated by sol-gel method as a target material. The gallium doping concentration was varied from 1.0 to 5.0 at.%. The effect of the deposition temperature and the dopant concentration, on the physical properties of the GZO thin films was analyzed. The as-deposited films with a thickness of about 300 nm were polycrystalline with a hexagonal wurtzite structure and preferentially oriented in the (002) crystallographic direction. The crystallite size ranged from 25 to 32 nm, depending on the deposition temperature and Ga at.%. A minimum electrical resistivity value of 2.2 x 10(-3) Omega cm and a maximum mobility of 16.42 cm(2)/V s were obtained under the optimal deposition conditions. The optical transmittance measurements show that all films are highly transparent in the visible wavelength region with an average transmittance of about 90%. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.