Boron-doped plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition of ZnO thin films

Highly conducting boron-doped ZnO thin films have been grown at low temperature (200°C) by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition using diethyl zinc [Zn (C2 H5) 2], carbon dioxide (CO2), triethylboron, and argon gas mixtures. The minimum resistivity is <4× 10-4 cm with an excellent optical transmission (>85% for the visible spectrum). The free-electron concentration, determined by Hall effect measurement, was as high as 1× 1021 / cm3 with a mobility of 13.5 cm2 /V s. For this deposition approach, the low-reactivity oxidant CO2 allows a uniform film growth over a large area, and the low-toxicity triethylboron allows a simple and convenient boron doping.