Sputtering of ZnO buffer layer on Si for GaN blue light emitting materials

The preparation of high quality ZnO/Si substrates for the growth of GaN blue light emitting materials is considered. ZnO thin films have been deposited on Si(100) and Si(111) substrates by conventional magnetron sputtering. Morphology, crystallinity andc-axis preferred orientation of ZnO thin films have been investigated by transmitting electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray rocking curve (XRC). It is proved that the ZnO thin films have perfect structure. The full-width-at-half-maximum (FWHM) of the ZnO(002) XRC of these films is about 1°, while the minimum is 0.353°. This result is better than the minimum FWHM (about 2°) reported by other research groups. Moreover, comparison and discussion are given on film structure of ZnO/Si(100) and ZnO/Si(111).