Zinc Oxide Thin-film Transistors: an Investigation of the Performance and Stability of Zinc Oxide Thin-film Transistors and the Role of High-k Dielectrics

Transparent oxide semiconducting films have continued to receive considerable attention, from a fundamental and application-based point of view, primarily because of their useful fundamental properties. Of particular interest is zinc oxide (ZnO), an n-type semiconductor that exhibits excellent optical, electrical, catalytic and gas-sensing properties, and has many applications in various fields. In this work, thin film transistor (TFT) arrays based on ZnO have been prepared by reactive radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The sputtering process was carried out at room temperature with no intentional heating. The aim of this is to prepare ZnO thin films with stable semiconducting electrical properties to be used as the active channel in TFTs; and to understand the role of intrinsic point defects in device performance and stability. The effect of oxygen (O2) adsorption on TFT device characteristics is also investigated. TFTs incorporating silicon dioxide, and different high-k dielectrics are also investigated.