Published online by Cambridge University Press: 19 January 2016
This study reports on the preparation of cobalt doped zinc oxide (Co:ZnO) filmsvia pulsed electron beam ablation (PEBA) from a single target containing 20 w%Co on sapphire (0001) and silicon (100) substrates. The films have beendeposited at various temperatures (350оC,400оC, 450оC) and pulsefrequencies (2 Hz, 4 Hz), under a background argon (Ar) pressure of about 3mtorr, and an accelerating voltage of 14 kV. The surface morphology has beenexamined by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy(SEM). According to SEM analysis, the films consist of nano-globules whose sizeis in the range of 80-178 nm. Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDX) revealsthat deposition is congruent and the prepared films contain∼20±5 w% cobalt. It has been found that the nano-globules inthe deposited films are cobalt-rich zones containing ∼70 w% Co. Fromx-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis, Co 2p3/2 peaksindicate that the deposited films contain CoO (binding energy = 780.5eV) as well as metallic Co (binding energy = 778.1-778.5 eV). X-raydiffraction (XRD) analysis supports the presence of metallic Co hcp phase(2ϴ = 44.47° and 47.43°) in the films.