Abstract: Mn–W co-doped ZnO (ZMWO) thin films with low resistivity and high transparency were successfully prepared on glass substrate by direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering at low temperature. The sputtering power was varied from 65 to 150 W. The crystallinity and resistivity of ZMWO films greatly depend on sputtering power while the optical transmittance and optical band gap are not sensitive to sputtering power. All the deposited films are polycrystalline with a hexagonal structure and have a preferred orientation along the c-axis perpendicular to the substrate. Considering the crystallinity and the electrical and optical properties, we suggest that the optimal sputtering power in this experiment is 90 W and, at this power, the ZMWO film has the lowest resistivity of 9.8 × 10^-4 Ω.cm with a high transmittance of approximately 89% in the visible range.

Key words: Mn–W co-doped ZnO films, transparent conducting films, magnetron sputtering, sputtering power