Electrical Conductivity of a $TiO_2$ Thin Film Deposited on $Al_2O_3$ Substrates by CVD

Electrical conductivity of $TiO_2$ thin films, deposited on $Al_2O_3$ substrates by metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), was measured by four-point probe method in a temperature range from $800^{\circ}C$ to $1025^{\circ}C$ and an oxygen partial pressure range from $2.7{\times}10^{-5}$ atm to 1 atm. In the low oxygen partial pressure region n-type conduction was dominant, but in the high oxygen partial pressure region p-type conduction behavior appeared due to substitution of Ti ions by Al ions, which were diffused from the substrate during post deposition annealing process. Electrical conductivity of the film decreases in the n-type region and increases in the p-type region as the oxygen partial pressure increases. The transition points, which show the minimum conductivity, shifted to the higher oxygen partial pressure region as the measuring temperature increased, but it shifted to lower oxygen partial pressure region with an increase in the post annealing temperature. The results were also discussed with the possible defect models.