Epitaxial growth of ZnO thin films on LiNbO₃ substrates

ZnO thin films have been epitaxially grown on LiNbO₃ (0001) substrates by rf magnetron sputtering. The crystallinity was examined by X-ray diffraction. The ω-rocking curve full width at half-maximum for the ZnO (0002) reflection for films grown at 550°C was 0.46°. The epitaxial relationship between the ZnO film and the LiNbO₃ substrate was determined to be [112̄0] ZnO//[101̄0] LiNbO₃. The lattice mismatch for this orientation is about 9%, while it is about 18% for ZnO films on sapphire (0001) substrates. The temperature necessary for epitaxy was found to be lower than that required for films grown on sapphire.