Direct Observation of Nitrogen Location in Molecular Beam Epitaxy Grown Nitrogen-Doped ZnO

Paul Fons, Hiroshi Tampo, Alexander V. Kolobov, Masataka Ohkubo, Shigeru Niki, Junji Tominaga, Roberta Carboni, Federico Boscherini, and Stephan Friedrich
Phys. Rev. Lett. 96, 045504 – Published 2 February 2006

Abstract

ZnO is a wide band gap, naturally n-type semiconductor with great promise for optoelectronic applications; the main obstacle yet to be overcome is p-type doping. Nitrogen, the most promising candidate currently being pursued as a dopant, has been predicted to preferentially incorporate into the ZnO lattice in the form of a N2 molecule at an O site when a plasma source is used, leading to compensation rather than p-type doping. We demonstrate this to be incorrect by using N K-edge x-ray absorption spectra and comparing them with first-principles calculations showing that nitrogen, in fact, incorporates substitutionally at O sites where it is expected to act as an acceptor. We also detect the formation of molecular nitrogen upon annealing. These results suggest that effective p-type doping of ZnO with N may be possible only for low-temperature growth processes.

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  • Received 27 October 2005

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.96.045504

©2006 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Paul Fons*, Hiroshi Tampo, Alexander V. Kolobov, Masataka Ohkubo, Shigeru Niki, and Junji Tominaga

  • National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science & Technology, Tsukuba Central 4, Higashi 1-1-1, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8562, Japan

Roberta Carboni and Federico Boscherini

  • Department of Physics and CNISM, University of Bologna, viale C. Berti Pichat 6/2, 40127 Bologna, Italy

Stephan Friedrich

  • Advanced Detector Group, L-270 Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California 94550, USA

  • *Electronic addresses: paul-fons@aist.go.jp; http://staff.aist.go.jp/paul-fons

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Issue

Vol. 96, Iss. 4 — 3 February 2006

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