Growth of ZnO bulk crystals: A review

A critical review is proposed of the different techniques of bulk growth of ZnO crystals for their use as a substrate in the homoepitaxial growth of this attractive compound. The crystals are assessed from their structural and electrical properties and from the structural properties and purity of homoepitaxial films grown on them by various techniques such as plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy, pulsed laser deposition, magnetron sputtering, chemical vapor deposition, metalorganic chemical vapor epitaxy, liquid phase epitaxy.