Effect of very low to high Sb-doping on the structural,electrical, photo-conductive and thermoelectric properties of fluorine-doped SnO<Subscript>2</Subscript> (FTO) thin films prepared by spray pyrolysis technique

Transparent conducting fluorine and Sb-doped [SnO₂: (F, Sb)] thin films have been deposited onto preheated glass substrates using the spray pyrolysis technique by the various dopant quantity of spray solution. The effect of antimony impurities on the structural, morphological, electrical, Thermo-electrical, optical and photoconductive properties of films has been investigated. The [F/Sn] atomic concentration ratio (x) in the spray solution is kept at value of 0.7 and the [Sb/Sn] atomic ratio (y) varied at values of 0, 0.0005, 0.001, 0.002, 0.01, 0.03, 0.05, 0.07 and 0.10. It is found that the films are polycrystalline in nature with a tetragonal crystal structure corresponding to SnO₂ phase having orientation along the (110) and (200) planes. SEM images indicated that nanostructure of the films has a particle type growth. The average grain size increases with increasing spraying quantity of Sb-dopant. The compositional analysis of SnO₂: (F, Sb) thin films were studied using EDAX. SEM and AFM study reveals the surface of SnO₂: (F, Sb) to be made of nanocrystalline particles. The Hall Effect measurements have shown n-type conductivity in all deposited films. The lowest sheet resistance and highest the carrier concentration about 7.7 Ω/□ and 6.6 × 10²², respectively, were obtained for the film deposited with y = [Sb/Sn] = 0.001 and x = [F/Sn] = 0.7. The maximum of the Seebeck coefficient equal to 12.8 μV K^?1 was obtained at 400 K for the film deposited with y = [Sb/Sn] = 0.10. The average transmittance of films varied over the range 10–80 % with change of Sb-concentration. The band gap values of samples were obtained in the range of 3.19–3.8 eV. From the photoconductive studies, the Sb-doped films exhibited sensitivity to incident light especially in y = 0.001. The electrical resistivity and carrier concentration vary in range 5.44 × 10^?4 to 1.02 × 10^?2Ω cm and 2.6 × 10²²–6.6 × 10²² cm^?3, respectively.     

Electrical,optical and magnetoresistive behavior of nanostructured ZnO:Cu thin films deposited by sputtering

Copper doped ZnO (ZnO:Cu) nanostructured films with magnetoresistive behavior were produced by growing ZnO/Cu/ZnO arrays at room temperature (RT) by the sputtering technique on corning glass substrates. The arrays were made with two electrical insulating ZnO films of 50 and 105 nm, and a Cu film of 5 nm, both materials were deposited at RT by the RF- and DC-sputtering technique, respectively. The processing method involves two stages that proceed in the course of the growth process, the main one is originated by the non-equilibrium regime of the sputtering technique, and the second is the diffusion-redistribution of the intermediate Cu film towards the neighborhood ZnO layers aided by the nanocrystalline films character. The influence of applying an additional annealing stage to the arrays in N₂ atmosphere at 250 and 350 °C by periods of 30 min were studied. The resistivity of the ZnO:Cu films can be varied from 0.0034 to 2.83 Ω-cm, corresponding to electron concentrations of 1.12?×?10²¹ and 7.85?×?10¹⁷ cm^?3 with carrier mobility of 1.6 and 2.8 cm²/V s. Measured changes on the magnetoresistance behavior of the films at RT were of ?R?~?3% for annealed samples with electron concentration of 1.12?×?10²¹ cm^?3. The X-ray diffraction measurements show that the films are comprised of nanocrystallites with dimensions between 13 and 20 nm in size with preferred (002) orientation. The transmittance of the films in the visible region was of 83% with an optical band gap of ~?3.3 eV for the low-resistivity samples.     

Evaluation of the physical,optical, and electrical properties of SnO<Subscript>2</Subscript>: F thin films prepared by nebulized spray pyrolysis for optoelectronics

Fluorine-doped tin oxide (SnO₂:F, FTO) thin films were prepared by the nebulized spray pyrolysis technique on glass substrates using tin(IV) chloride pentahydrate (SnCl₂·5H₂O) and ammonium fluoride (NH₄F) as source materials. Different volumes of solvent were used to prepare the spray solution, and their effects on structural, optical, morphological, and electrical properties were investigated. X-ray diffraction patterns revealed the polycrystalline tetragonal structure of FTO films. FESEM images demonstrated well-aligned trigonal-shaped nano-grains. Optical band gap values were estimated to be in the range of 3.71–3.66 eV by Tauc’s plot. The effects of solvent volume on the resistivity, conductivity, carrier concentration, mobility, and figure of merit of FTO films were examined. The lowest electrical resistivity and sheet resistance values were 1.90?×?10^?4 Ω cm and 4.96 Ω/cm, respectively.     

Effect of annealing time on the structural,optical and electrical characteristics of DC sputtered ITO thin films

Using an Indium tin oxide (ITO) ceramic target (In₂O₃:SnO₂, 90:10 wt%), ITO thin films were deposited by conventional direct current magnetron sputtering technique onto glass substrates at room temperature. The obtained ITO films were annealed at 400 °C for different annealing times (1, 2, 5, 7, and 9 h). The effect of annealing time on their structural, optical and electrical properties was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microcopy (AFM), ultra violet–visible (UV–Vis) spectrometer, and temperature dependence Hall measurements. XRD data of obtained ITO films reveal that the films were polycrystalline with cubic structure and exhibit (222), (400) and (440) crystallographic planes of In₂O₃. AFM and Scanning Electron Microscopy SEM have been used to probe the surface roughness and the morphology of the films. The refractive index (n), thickness and porosity (%) of the films were evaluated from transmittance spectra obtained in the range 350–700 nm by UV–Vis. The optical band gap of ITO film was found to be varying from 3.35 to 3.47 eV with the annealing time. The annealing time dependence of resistivity, carrier concentration, carrier mobility, sheet resistance, and figure of merit values of the films at room temperature were discussed. The carrier concentration of the films increased from 1.21 × 10²⁰ to 1.90 × 10²⁰ cm^?3, the Hall mobility increased from 11.38 to 18 cm² V^?1 s^?1 and electrical resistivity decreased from 3.97 × 10^?3 to 2.13 × 10^?3 Ω cm with the increase of annealing time from 1 to 9 h. Additionally, the temperature dependence of the carrier concentration, and carrier mobility for the as-deposited and 400 °C annealed ITO films for 2 and 9 h were analysed in the temperature range of 80–350 K.     

Effect of Ga doping concentrations,substrate temperatures and working pressures on the electrical and optical properties of ZnO thin films

We fabricated Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) thin films on glass substrate by RF magnetron sputtering method with different conditions of Ga₂O₃ concentration, substrate temperature and working pressure. Next we investigated the electrical, optical and structural properties of the GZO thin films. At a substrate temperature of 300 °C, a working pressure of 1 mTorr, and a Ga₂O₃ concentration of 3 wt%, the GZO thin films showed the lowest resistivity of 3.16 × 10^?4 Ω cm, a carrier concentration of 7.64 × 10²⁰ cm^?3 and a Hall mobility of 25.8 cm²/Vs. Moreover, the GZO thin films exhibited the highest (002) orientation under the same conditions and the full width at half maximum of X-ray peak was 0.34°. All GZO thin films showed the optical transmittance of more than 80 % in the visible range regardless of working conditions. The Burstein–Moss effect was observed by the change of doping concentration of Ga₂O₃. The GZO thin films were fabricated to have the good electrical and optical properties through optimizing doping concentration of Ga₂O₃, substrate temperature, working pressure. Therefore, we confirmed the possibility of application of GZO thin film as transparent conductive oxide used in flat panel display and solar cell.     

The synthesis and characterization of Cu<Subscript>2</Subscript>ZnSnS<Subscript>4</Subscript> thin films from melt reactions using xanthate precursors

Kesterite, Cu₂ZnSnS₄ (CZTS), is a promising absorber layer for use in photovoltaic cells. We report the use of copper, zinc and tin xanthates in melt reactions to produce Cu₂ZnSnS₄ (CZTS) thin films. The phase of the as-produced CZTS is dependent on decomposition temperature. X-ray diffraction patterns and Raman spectra show that films annealed between 375 and 475 °C are tetragonal, while at temperatures <375 °C hexagonal material was obtained. The electrical parameters of the CZTS films have also been determined. The conduction of all films was p-type, while the other parameters differ for the hexagonal and tetragonal materials: resistivity (27.1 vs 1.23 Ω cm), carrier concentration (2.65 × 10⁺¹⁵ vs 4.55 × 10⁺¹⁷ cm^?3) and mobility (87.1 vs 11.1 cm² V^?1 s^?1). The Hall coefficients were 2.36 × 10³ versus 13.7 cm³ C^?1.     

Deposition and optoelectronic properties of ITO (In<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript>:Sn) thin films by Jet nebulizer spray (JNS) pyrolysis technique

Nanocrystalline ITO thin films were deposited on glass substrates by a new spray pyrolysis route, Jet nebulizer spray (JNS) pyrolysis technique, for the first time at different substrate temperatures varying from 350 to 450 °C using a precursor containing indium and tin solution with 90:10 at% concentration. The structural, optical and electrical properties have been investigated as a function of temperature. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the deposited films were well crystallized and polycrystalline with cubic structure having (222) preferred orientation. The optical band gap values calculated from the transmittance spectra of all the ITO films showed a blue shift of the absorbance edge from 3.60 to 3.76 eV revealing the presence of nanocrystalline particles. AFM analysis showed uniform surface morphology with very low surface roughness values. XPS results showed the formation of ITO films with In³⁺ and Sn⁴⁺ states. TEM results showed the nanocrystalline nature with grain size about 12-15 nm and SAED pattern confirmed cubic structure of the ITO films. The electrical parameters like the resistivity, mobility and carrier concentration are found as 1.82 × 10⁻³ Ω cm, 8.94 cm²/Vs and 4.72 × 10²⁰ cm⁻³, respectively for ITO film deposited at 400 °C. These results show that the ITO films, prepared using the new JNS pyrolysis technique, have the device quality optoelectronic properties when deposited under the proposed conditions at 400 °C.     

Quality enhancement of AZO thin films at various thicknesses by introducing ITO buffer layer

Due to the simultaneously superior optical transmittance and low electrical resistivity, transparent conductive electrodes play a significant role in semiconductor electronics. To enhance the electrical properties of these films, one approach is thickness increment which degrades the optical properties. However, a preferred way to optimize both electrical and optical properties of these layers is to introduce a buffer layer. In this work, the effects of buffer layer and film thickness on the structural, electrical, optical and morphological properties of AZO thin films are investigated. Al-doped zinc oxide (AZO) is prepared at various thicknesses of 100 to 300 nm on the bare and 100 nm-thick indium tin oxide (ITO) coated glass substrates by radio frequency sputtering. Results demonstrate that by introducing ITO as a buffer layer, the average values of sheet resistance and strain within the film are decreased (about 76 and 3.3 times lower than films deposited on bare glasses), respectively. Furthermore, the average transmittance of ITO/AZO bilayer is improved nearly 10% regarding single AZO thin film. This indicates that bilayer thin films show better physical properties rather than conventional monolayer thin films. As the AZO film thickness increases, the interplanar spacing, d₍₀₀₂₎, strain within the film and compressive stress of the film in the hexagonal lattice, decreases indicating the higher yield of AZO crystal. Moreover, with the growth in film thickness, carrier concentration and optical band gap (E_g) of AZO film are increased from 4.62?×?10¹⁹ to 8.21?×?10¹⁹ cm^?3 and from 3.55 to 3.62 eV, respectively due to the Burstein-Moss (BM) effect. The refractive index of AZO thin film is obtained in the range of 2.24–2.26. With the presence of ITO buffer layer, the AZO thin film exhibits a resistivity as low as 6?×?10^?4 Ω cm, a sheet resistance of 15 Ω/sq and a high figure of merit (FOM) of 1.19?×?10⁴ (Ω cm)^?1 at a film thickness of 300 nm. As a result, the quality of AZO thin films deposited on ITO buffer layer is found to be superior regarding those grown on a bare glass substrate. This study has been performed over these two substrates because of their significant usage in the organic light emitting diodes and photovoltaic applications as an enhanced carrier injecting electrodes.     

Effect of sputtering power and annealing temperature on the properties of indium tin oxide thin films prepared from radio frequency sputtering using powder target

Indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films were deposited on quartz substrates by radio frequency (RF) sputtering with different RF power (100–250 W) using the powder target at room temperature. The effect of sputtering power on their structural, electrical and optical properties was systematically investigated. The intensity of (400) orientation clearly increases with the sputtering power increases, although the films have (222) preferred orientation. Increasing sputtering power is benefit for lower resistivity and transmittance. The films were annealed at different temperature (500–800 °C), then we explored the relationship between their electro-optical and structural properties and temperature. It has been observed that the annealed films tend to have (400) orientation and then show the lower resistivity and transmittance. The ITO thin film prepared by RF sputtering using powder target at 700 °C annealing temperature and 200 W sputtering power has the resistivity of 2.08 × 10^?4 Ω cm and the transmittance of 83.2 %, which specializes for the transparent conductive layers.     

Deposition of AgGaS<Subscript>2</Subscript> thin films by double source thermal evaporation technique

In this study, polycrystalline AgGaS₂ thin films were deposited by the sequential evaporation of AgGaS₂ and Ag sources with thermal evaporation technique. Thermal treatment in nitrogen atmosphere for 5 min up to 700 °C was applied to the deposited thin films and that resulted in the mono phase AgGaS₂ thin films without the participation of any other minor phase. Structural and compositional analyses showed the structure of the films completely changes with annealing process. The measurements of transmittance and reflectance allowed us to calculate the band gap of films lying in 2.65 and 2.79 eV depending on annealing temperature. The changes in the structure with annealing process also modify the electrical properties of the films. The resistivity of the samples varied in between 2 × 10³ and 9 × 10⁶ (Ω-cm). The room temperature mobility depending on the increasing annealing temperature was in the range of 6.7–37 (cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹) with the changes in carrier concentrations lying in 5.7 × 10¹³–2.5 × 10¹⁰ cm⁻³. Mobility-temperature dependence was also analyzed to determine the scattering mechanisms in the studied temperature range with annealing. The variations in the electrical parameters of the films were discussed in terms of their structural changes.     

Investigation of dual ion beam sputtered transparent conductive Ga-doped ZnO films

Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) transparent conducting films were deposited on sapphire (0001) substrates using dual ion beam sputtering deposition system. The impact of growth temperature on the structural, morphological, elemental, optical, and electrical properties was thoroughly investigated and reported. X-ray diffraction measurements explicitly confirmed that all GZO films had (002) preferred crystal orientation. The film deposited at 400 °C exhibited the narrowest full-width at half-maximum value of 0.24° for (002) crystalline plane and the lowest room temperature electrical resistivity of 4.11 × 10^?3 Ω cm. The Raman spectra demonstrated the vibrational modes at 576 and 650–670 cm^?1, associated with native oxygen vacancies and elemental Ga doping in ZnO lattice, respectively. All doped films showed an overall transmittance of above 95 % in the visible spectra. A correlation between structural, optical, elemental, and electrical properties with GZO growth temperature was established.     

Characterization of ITO/CdO/glass thin films evaporated by electron beam technique

Abstract

A thin buffer layer of cadmium oxide (CdO) was used to enhance the optical and electrical properties of indium tin oxide (ITO) films prepared by an electron-beam evaporation technique. The effects of the thickness and heat treatment of the CdO layer on the structural, optical and electrical properties of ITO films were carried out. It was found that the CdO layer with a thickness of 25 nm results in an optimum transmittance of 70% in the visible region and an optimum resistivity of 5.1×10^?3 Ω cm at room temperature. The effect of heat treatment on the CdO buffer layer with a thickness of 25 nm was considered to improve the optoelectronic properties of the formed ITO films. With increasing annealing temperature, the crystallinity of ITO films seemed to improve, enhancing some physical properties, such as film transmittance and conductivity. ITO films deposited onto a CdO buffer layer heated at 450 °C showed a maximum transmittance of 91% in the visible and near-infrared regions of the spectrum associated with the highest optical energy gap of 3.61 eV and electrical resistivity of 4.45×10^?4 Ω cm at room temperature. Other optical parameters, such as refractive index, extinction coefficient, dielectric constant, dispersion energy, single effective oscillator energy, packing density and free carrier concentration, were also studied.     

Optical and hall properties of Al-doped ZnO thin films fabricated by pulsed laser deposition with various substrate temperatures

The 3 wt% Al-doped zinc oxide (AZO) thin films were fabricated on quartz substrates at a fixed oxygen pressure of 200 mTorr with various substrate temperatures (room temp. ～500 °C) by using pulsed laser deposition in order to investigate the microstructure, optical, and electrical properties of AZO thin films. All thin films were shown to be c-axis oriented, exhibiting only a (002) diffraction peak. The AZO thin film, fabricated at 200 mTorr and 400 °C, showed the highest (002) orientation and the full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the (002) diffraction peak was 0.42°. The c-axis lattice constant decreased with increasing substrate temperature. The electrical property indicated that the highest carrier concentration (1.27 × 10²¹ cm^?3) and the lowest resistivity (6.72 × 10^?4 Ωcm) were obtained in the AZO thin film fabricated at 200 mTorr and 400 °C. The optical transmittance in the visible region was higher than 80 %. The Burstein-Moss effect, which shifts to a high photon energy, was observed.     

Optimization of Cu<Subscript>2</Subscript>ZnSnS<Subscript>4</Subscript> thin film absorber layer growth without sulphurization using triethanolamine as complexing agent for thin film solar cells applications

Quaternary kesterite Cu₂ZnSnS₄ (CZTS) thin films have been prepared via a simple spin-coating technique based on a sol–gel precursor of 2-methoxyethanol solution with metal salts and thiourea. Solution processed CZTS thin film growth parameters using complexing agent triethanolamine (TEA) have been investigated. Effects of complexing agent TEA on structural, morphological, optical, electrical and photovoltaic properties of CZTS thin films were systematically investigated. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy studies reveal that amorphous nature of CZTS thin film changes into polycrystalline with kesterite crystal structure with optimized TEA concentartion. Surface morphology of CZTS films were analyzed by field emission scanning electron microscope and atomic force microscope, which revealed the smooth, uniform, homogeneous and densely packed grains and systematic grain growth formation with varying TEA concentrations. UV–Vis spectra revealed a direct energy band gap ranging from 1.78 to 1.50 eV, which was found to depend upon the TEA concentration. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrated stoichiometric atomic ratios of multicationic quaternary CZTS thin film grown without sulphurization. p-type conductivity was confirmed using Hall measurements and the effect of varying concentartion of TEA on electrical and photovoltaic properties are studied. The SLG/FTO/ZnO/CZTS/Al thin film solar cell is fabricated with the CZTS absorber layer grown at optimized TAE concentration of 0.06 M. It shows a power conversion efficiency of 0.87% for a 0.16 cm² area with V_oc = 0.257 mV, J_sc = 8.95 mA/cm² and FF?=?38%.     

Preparation and photoelectric properties of Ti doped ZnO thin films annealed in vacuum

In the present paper, Ti doped ZnO films with higher conductive properties were grown on room temperature glass substrates by radio frequency magnetron sputtering and followed by annealing in vacuum. The microstructures and surface figures of the films were investigated by X-ray diffraction and scanning electronic microscopy, and its optical and electrical properties were measured using a four-point probe technique and 756-type spectrophotometer at room temperature. The results show that the preferred growth orientation of the films is (002) orientation, and after annealing in vacuum at 400 °C for 3 h, the average transmittance reduces from 90 to 80%, and resistivity reduces from 4.53 × 10^?2 to 8.78 × 10^?4 Ω cm.     

Effect of film thickness on properties of aluminum doped zinc oxide thin films deposition on polymer substrate

A series of aluminum doped zinc oxide thin films with different thickness (25–150 nm) were deposited on indium tin oxide coated polyethylene terephthalate substrates by radio frequency magnetron sputtering method at room temperature. The structural, optical and electrical properties of the films were investigated by X-ray Diffractometer, UV–Vis spectrometer and Hall Effect Measurement System. All the obtained films were polycrystalline with a hexagonal structure and a preferred orientation along [002] direction with the c-axis perpendicular to the substrate surface. The optical energy band gap (E_g) values of the films were found to be in the range from 3.36 to 3.26 eV, and their average optical transmissions were about 75 % in the visible region. The films had excellent electrical properties with the resistivities in the range from 2.78 × 10^?5 to 2.03 × 10^?4 Ω cm, carrier densities more than 3.35 × 10²¹ cm^?3 and Hall mobilities between 5.77 and 11.13 cm²/V s.     

Structural,optical and electrical properties of PbS and PbSe quantum dot thin films

PbS and PbSe were prepared by hot injection method. The powders were used for preparing the corresponding films by using thermal evaporation technique. The structural, optical and electrical properties of PbS and PbSe thin films were investigated. The structural properties of PbS and PbSe were investigated by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray techniques (EDX). PbS and PbSe films were found to have cubic rock salt structure. The particles size ranged from 1.32 to 2.26 nm for PbS and 1.28–2.48 nm for PbSe. EDX results showed that PbS films have rich sulphur content, while PbSe films have rich lead content. The optical constants (absorption coefficient and the refractive index) of the films were determined in the wavelength range 200–2500 nm. The optical energy band gap of PbS and PbSe films was determined as 3.25 and 2.20 eV, respectively. The refractive index, the optical dielectric constant and the ratio of charge carriers concentration to its effective mass were determined. The electrical resistivity, charge carriers concentration and carriers mobility of PbS at room temperature were determined as 0.55 Ω cm, 1.7 × 10¹⁶ cm^?3 and 656 cm² V^?1 s^?1, respectively, and for PbSe films they were determined as 0.4 Ω cm, 9 × 10¹⁵ cm^?3 and 1735 cm² V^?1 s^?1, respectively. These electrical parameters were investigated as a function of temperature.     

Growth and characterizations of dual ion beam sputtered CIGS thin films for photovoltaic applications

The growth of CIGS thin films on soda-lime glass substrates at different substrate temperatures by dual ion beam sputtering system in a single-step route from a single quaternary sputtering target with the composition of Cu (In_0.70 Ga_0.30) Se₂ was reported. The effects of the substrate temperature on structural, optical, morphological and electrical properties of CIGS films were investigated. Stoichiometry of one such film was investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. All CIGS films had demonstrated a strong (112) orientation located at 2θ ~26.70^o, which indicated the chalcopyrite structure of films. The value of full-width at half-maximum of (112) peak was reduced from 0.58° to 0.19° and crystallite size was enlarged from 14.98 to 43.05 nm as growth temperature was increased from 100 to 400 °C. However, atomic force microscope results showed a smooth and uniform surface at lower growth temperature and the surface roughness was observed to increase with increasing growth temperature. Hall measurements exhibited the minimum film resistivity of 0.09 Ω cm with a hole concentration of 2.42 × 10¹⁸ cm^?3 and mobility of 28.60 cm² V^?1 s^?1 for CIGS film grown at 100 °C. Film absorption coefficient was found to enhance nominally from 1 × 10⁵ to 2.3 × 10⁵ cm^?1 with increasing growth temperature from 100 to 400 °C.     

Dependence of structural, optical and electrical properties on substrate temperature for hexagonal MgxZn1−xO films

Single hexagonal-phase Mg_xZn_1?xO films were deposited on glass substrates by pulsed laser deposition from a ZnO target mixed with MgO. The effect of substrate temperature on the structural, electrical and optical properties was investigated by X-ray diffraction and the transmittance measurements. It was observed that Mg incorporation lead to a clear shift of the (002) peak position to lower angle with reference to pure ZnO films due to the residual stress change with deposition temperature. It was also found that Mg doping increased the resistivity by 2 orders of magnitude and the maximum resistivity was 0.072 Ω·cm at 550 °C with the carrier concentration of 1.1 × 10¹⁹ cm^?3. The visible transmittance of above 80 % was obtain in the alloy films, which optical band gap was observed to increase with the substrate temperature, attaining 3.85 eV at 600 °C. The possible mechanism was discussed.     

The characteristics of transparent conducting Al-doped zinc oxide thin films deposited on polymer substrates

Al-doped zinc oxide (AZO) transparent, conductive thin films were deposited on inexpensive polyethylene terephthalate substrates, using radio frequency (rf) magnetron sputtering, with an AZO ceramic target (the Al₂O₃ content is approximately 2 wt%). This paper presents an effective method for the optimization of the parameters for the deposition process for AZO thin films with multiple performance characteristics, using the Taguchi method, combined with grey relational analysis. Using the Taguchi quality design concept, an L₉ orthogonal array was chosen for the experiments. The effects of various process parameters (rf power, substrate-to-target distance, substrate temperature and deposition time) on the electrical, structural, morphological and optical properties of AZO films were investigated. In the confirmation runs, using grey relational analysis, the electrical resistivity of the AZO films was found to have decreased from 5.0?×?10^?3 to 1.6?×?10^?3?Ω-cm and the optical transmittance was found to have increased from 74.39 to 79.40%. The results demonstrate that the Taguchi method combined with grey relational analysis is an economical way to obtain the multiple performance characteristics of AZO films with the fewest experimental data. Additionally, by applying an Al buffer layer, of thickness 10?nm, the results show that the electrical resistivity was 3.1?×?10^?4?Ω-cm and the average optical transmittance, in the visible part of the spectrum, was approximately 79.12%.