Crystallographic Characteristics of ZnO Films Deposited on SiO$_2$/Si Substrate

The RF planar magnetron sputtering technique was used to fabricate uniform ZnO/$SiO_2$/Si thin films at high growth rate. A detailed crystallographic character of these thin films has been carried oct using XRD, XRC, and SEM. These thin films have the configuration of c-axis orientation perpendicular to $SiO_2$/ Si substrate. The dependence of the thickness of ZnO/$SiO_2$/Si films on applied RF power parameters was also investigated. The crystallinity of films was improved as the substrate temperature was high, RF input power increased, and Ar/$O_2$ ratio decreased. Also, most of ZnO films fabricated on $SiO_2$/Si were suitable for SAW filter since a standard deviation of XRC (002) peak was less than $6^{\circ}$. The presence of the $SiO_2$ layer has a beneficial effect on the crystalline quality of the grown ZnO films.