Laser ablation of Co:ZnO films deposited from Zn and Co metal targets on (0001) Al2O3 substrates

We report on the synthesis of high-quality Co-doped ZnO thin films using the pulsed laser deposition technique on (0001)-Al2O3 substrates performed in an oxidizing atmosphere, using Zn and Co metallic targets. We first optimized the growth of ZnO in order to obtain the less strained film. Highly crystallized Co:ZnO thin films are obtained by an alternative deposition from Zn and Co metal targets. This procedure allows an homogenous repartition of the Co in the ZnO wurzite structure which is confirmed by the linear dependence of the out-of-plane lattice parameter as a function of the Co dopant. In the case of 5% Co doped, the film exhibits ferromagnetism with a Curie temperature close to the room temperature. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.