Highly electrically conductive indium-tin-oxide thin films epitaxially grown on yttria-stabilized zirconia (100) by pulsed-laser deposition

Highly electrically conductive indium-tin-oxide thin films were epitaxially grown on an extremely flat (100) surface of yttria-stabilized zirconia single-crystal substrates at a substrate temperature of 600 degrees C by a pulsed-laser deposition technique. A resistivity down to 7.7x10(-5) Omega cm was reproducibly obtained, maintaining optical transmission exceeding 85% at wavelengths from 340 to 780 nm. The carrier densities of the films were enhanced up to 1.9x10(21) cm(-3), while the Hall mobility showed a slight, almost linear, decrease from 55 to 40 cm(2) V-1 s(-1) with increasing SnO2 concentration. The low resistivity is most likely the result of the good crystal quality of the films. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(00)01319-X].