Synthesis and properties of Zn-Mg heterobimetallic carbamates. Crystal structures of the first reported single source precursors for ZnxMg1-xO thin films

The first mixed-metal Zn-Mg carbamates have been synthesised using a novel strategy of co-reaction between zinc and magnesium alkylamido intermediates. The complexes were structurally characterised by single-crystal X-ray diffraction; the nuclearity of these carbamato core subunits was found to vary from tetrameric to octameric with respect to the level of magnesium incorporated. The presence of magnesium in the predominantly zinc carbamato lattice was confirmed by refinement of the site occupancies of the metal atoms during the crystal data analysis, and it was found that displacement of up to 7.8% of zinc sites by magnesium atoms could be achieved before breakdown of the structure. Characterisation of the complexes' physicochemical properties revealed that they were suitable for use as single-source chemical vapour deposition (SSCVD) precursors in the deposition of ZnxMg1-xO thin films, an emerging material with promising band-gap engineering prospects.