Structural, optical and electrical properties of V doped ZnO thin films deposited by r.f. magnetron sputtering

Structural, optical and electrical properties of V doped ZnO thin films deposited by r.f. magnetron co-sputtering on glass substrates at different temperature, T_s, between 150°C and 500°C are studied. The EDS analyses indicate that the average vanadium content in the films is in the range of 0.86–0.89 at. %. XRD spectra demonstrate preferential (002) crystallographic orientation with c-axis perpendicular to the substrate surface and grains sizes of the films about 21–29 nm. The band gap energy, E_g, values are in the range of 3.44–3.47 eV. The deposited V doped ZnO films have low resistivity − (2–8). 10⁻³ Ω cm. Raman spectra show vibrational phonons modes typical for ZnO. Comparison with the structural, optical and electrical properties of thin films ZnO and ZnO:Al is given.