Highly electrically conductive indium–tin–oxide thin films epitaxially grown on yttria-stabilized zirconia (100) by pulsed-laser deposition

Highly electrically conductive indium–tin–oxide thin films were epitaxially grown on an extremely flat (100) surface of yttria-stabilized zirconia single-crystal substrates at a substrate temperature of 600 °C by a pulsed-laser deposition technique. A resistivity down to 7.7×10−5 Ω cm was reproducibly obtained, maintaining optical transmission exceeding 85% at wavelengths from 340 to 780 nm. The carrier densities of the films were enhanced up to 1.9×1021 cm−3, while the Hall mobility showed a slight, almost linear, decrease from 55 to 40 cm2 V−1 s−1 with increasing SnO2 concentration. The low resistivity is most likely the result of the good crystal quality of the films.