| Greater progress in the field of TCO (transparent oxide semiconductor) research has been hampered by a lack of availability of p-type candidates. Though the n-type TCO's are well documented and easily produced only one well documented oxide has spurred continued efforts at producing robust, p-type behavior, namely ZnO. Though p-ZnO has been produced, a coterminous research effort into improving the film qualities of lesser known naturally p-type TCO's could prove fruitful. Thus, this research has examined the thin film properties of two delafossites, CuCr1-xMgxO 2 and CuSc1-xMgxO2 as well as the surface properties of ZnO.;The delafossites, CuCr1-xMgxO2 and CuSc 1-xMgxO2 have been shown to have the superlative properties of high conductivities (220 S cm-1 and 70 S cm-1) and high transparencies in 400 nm thick films of ∼40% and ∼80% throughout the visible spectrum. We have also been the first to describe a near band edge photo-luminescence in CuSc1-x MgxO2 for 0.00< x<0.03, opening the possibility of creating delafossite active layer light emitting diodes. The greatest challenge in creating viable pn-junctions between the delafossites and ZnO is preventing an in situ reaction between CuCr1-xMgxO 2 and ZnO that creates a (Mg/Cu)Cr2O4 spinel interface.;We have found that a strategy of using a CuCr1-xMgxO 2/CuSc1-xMgxO2/ZnO on c-Al2O 3 in two ways may allow the growth of either a buffer/p/n or a p/i/n structure. Specifically, growing CuCrO2 at 700°C as a 100 nm nucleation layer followed by a 750°C growth of CuSc1-xMg xO2 and a 400°C growth of ZnO secures an epitaxial growth for the entire structure despite large lattice mismatches between c-Al2O3/CuCrO2 (8.7%) and CuCrO 2/CuScO2 (7.7%). This combined research takes the first steps in making robust pn-heterojunctions possible. Also, in an effort to progress an understanding of the surface chemistry of ZnO we provide results showing marked difference in the chemisorptions of dodecane thiol upon Zn- and O-terminated faces of ZnO. |
