Deposition of ZnO and MgZnO films by magnetron sputtering

Abstract ZnO and Mg x Zn 1− x O ( x  = 0.07, 0.10) films were deposited on Si substrates by radio-frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The sputtering pressure and substrate temperature were optimized. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of ZnO and Mg x Zn 1− x O ( x  = 0.07, 0.10) show only one dominant peak of the (002) plane, indicating a highly c -axis preferred orientation. Annealing treatments were performed for Mg 0.07 Zn 0.93 O films, suggesting it can greatly improve the c -axis preferred orientation. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra of ZnO and Mg 0.07 Zn 0.93 O films show one peak corresponding to the band-edge emission together with peaks located at 3.29 eV and 3.46 eV. A blue shift of the Mg 0.07 Zn 0.93 O emission suggests the successful incorporation of Mg into ZnO.