Blue shift in absorption edge and widening of band gap of ZnO by Al doping and Al–N co-doping

Al doped ZnO (ZnO:Al) and Al–N co-doped ZnO (ZnO:Al–N) films were synthesized based on plasma assisted reactive deposition of ZnO matrix and in-situ doping of Al or co-doping of Al and N. Similar with undoped ZnO, the synthesized ZnO:Al and ZnO:Al–N films are hexagonal wurtzite in structure and exhibit high optical transparency in a wide spectral region. Al doping and Al–N co-doping in ZnO result in a significant variation of the optical properties in the ultraviolet (UV) region and an UV extension of the transparent range. Compared with undoped ZnO, the doped films show blue-shifted absorption edge of 320 nm and widened band gap of 3.69 eV after annealing in H2/N2 mixed gas because of the incorporation of dopants and the improvement in the crystal structure. The ZnO:Al film exhibits declined transparency in the near infrared (IR) region, while the ZnO film co-doped with Al and N preserves high transparency from near UV to medium IR in addition to the UV extension of the transparent range. The annealed ZnO:Al and ZnO:Al–N films show better electrical properties than those of the undoped ZnO film and the as-deposited doped ZnO films.