Development and characterization of transparent and conductive InZnO films by magnetron sputtering at room temperature

•Deposition of InZnO by magnetron co-sputtering of pure indium and ZnO targets.•InZnO deposited at room temperature and no post anneal.•InZnO oxygen optimization for high conductivity and transmission.•Ellipsometry and Tauc–Lorentz model of InZnO.

The electrical and optical properties of InZnO for use as a transparent conducting oxide (TCO) is reported through the investigation of the concentration of indium and oxygen in the film. InZnO films (10–30 wt.% In) were deposited by magnetron sputtering without substrate heating or annealing from a ceramic ZnO and a metallic indium target. The film’s properties were investigated by X-ray photoelectric spectroscopy (XPS), 4-point probe, UV–vis spectroscopy (UV–vis), spectroscopic ellipsometry, and Hall measurements. InZnO films obtained properties with low resistivity, on the order of ∼5.5 × 10−4 ohm-cm, with a mobility ∼35 cm2/V S, and carrier concentrations ∼3 ∗ 1020 cm−3. The band-gap ranged from 2.7 to 3.2 eV with transmission of several samples >80%. InZnO has demonstrated properties adequate for photovoltaic applications.