Growth and characterization of NiO thin films prepared by dc reactive magnetron sputtering

Cubic nickel oxide (bunsenite) films were deposited on glass substrates by dc reactive magnetron sputtering technique at different sputtering powers. The influence of sputtering power on structural, compositional, optical, and electrical properties of the as deposited films were investigated. The XRD results revealed that the orientation of the NiO films was changed from (200) to (220) with increasing the sputtering power. The crystallinity of the films was also increased with sputtering power. The optical transmittance of NiO films in the visible spectrum was increased up to a sputtering power of 150 W and then decreased slightly at higher sputtering powers. The low electrical resistivity the NiO films was about 5.1 Ω cm at a sputtering power of 150 W.