Improvement in optical and electrical properties of ZnO films by neodymium and aluminum co-doping

Neodymium and aluminum co-doping effect on optical and electrical properties of ZnO films with Al/Zn ratio of 0.01 were studied. The films were deposited by chemical solution deposition and characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, UV–Vis and luminescent spectrophotometry, and electrical measurement. The films showed nanoscale particle size increasing as increased Nd/Al ratio, and obvious variations in transmittance of the UV–Visible light range, band gap, and resistivity with changing of Nd/Al ratio. The optimal optical and electrical properties were achieved when Nd/Al ratio was 0.0039. The photoluminescence measurement indicated that the films showed strong near band gap emission and weak emissions related to intrinsic defect.