Exploring p-type conductivity and homojunction devices in amorphous zinc tin nitride: A step toward enhanced nitride semiconductor applications

Nitride-based materials have garnered significant attention for next-generation optoelectronic devices owing to their tunable properties, which enable innovative device applications. Among these, zinc tin nitride (ZTN) is promising because of its unique electronic and optical characteristics. Herein, we report the first successful fabrication and characterization of p-n homojunction devices based on amorphous ZTN thin films doped with group III elements (Al and Ga). The doped ZTN thin films were synthesized using a modified pulsed plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) method, allowing precise control over the injection of each precursor for tailored material properties. Systematic doping of p-type ZTN with varying dopant concentrations revealed tunable optical and electrical properties, including hole concentrations ranging from 10 13 to 10 18 cm −3 , mobilities of ~1–10 cm 2 /(V∙s), bandgaps of 1.96–2.43 eV, work functions of 4.25–4.97 eV, and Fermi level modulation. The optimized ZTN-based homojunction device exhibited a rectification ratio of 10 2 , which is attributed to band structure engineering of the p-type ZTN. This work highlights the potential of group III-doped ZTN as a scalable platform for high-performance optoelectronic devices and contributes to the advancement of nitride-based materials for next-generation devices. • First successful fabrication of p-n homojunction devices using amorphous ZTN. • Tunable electrical and optical properties achieved through group III doping in ZTN. • p-type ZTN has hole concentrations from 10 13 to 10 18 cm -3 with variable mobility. • Optimized ZTN homojunction device exhibits a rectification ratio of 10 2 . • ZTN-based homojunctions offer scalable potential for optoelectronics.