Preparation of transparent and conductive multicomponent Zn–In–Sn oxide thin films by vacuum arc plasma evaporationa

This article describes the preparation of transparent conducting oxide (TCO) thin films by a vacuum arc plasma evaporation (VAPE) method using multicomponent oxide materials composed of any combination of two of the following binary compounds: ZnO, In 2 O 3 , and SnO 2 . The resulting TCO thin films were prepared with high deposition rates with the desired chemical composition in the ZnO– In 2 O 3 , In 2 O 3 – SnO 2 , and SnO 2 –ZnO systems by altering the composition of the sintered oxide fragments used as the source materials. Minimum resistivities were obtained in amorphous In 2 O 3 –ZnO, SnO 2 – In 2 O 3 , and ZnO– SnO 2 thin films that were prepared with a Zn content of about 8.5 at. %, an In content of about 46 at. %, and a Sn content of about 78 at. %, respectively. It was found that the electrical, optical and chemical properties in ZnO– SnO 2 thin films prepared using the VAPE method could be controlled by altering the Sn content.