Effect of chelating agents on the preferred orientation of ZnO films by sol-gel process

The effect of chelating agents of ZnO precursor solutions on crystallization behavior was investigated. Two different additives, monoethanolamine (MEA) and diethanolamine (DEA), and crystalline Pt (111)/Si and amorphous SiN x /Si substrates, were used for this study. ZnO film grown on SiN x /Si from a DEA-chelated precursor solution shows a poorly oriented microstructure with weak crystallization peaks, while ZnO film grown on Pt(111)/Si shows a c-axis preferred orientation. In the case of ZnO films prepared with a MEA-chelated precursor solution, all films show a strong preferred orientation irrespective of substrate type. This result clearly demonstrates the role of the chelating agent on the crystallographic orientation and crystallization behavior of sol-gel processed ZnO films.