In this study, we synthesized of gallium oxide (Ga2O3) powders by precipitation and polymerized complex method for application as a starting material of IGZO semiconductor target. Generally In2O3, Ga2O3, ZnO powder are used as starting materials for preparation of IGZO target. The Synthesis method of nano-sized Ga2O3 powder has not been established yet, while nano-size ZnO and In2O3 powders were generally used for production of IGZO target. This mismatch of the particle size among Ga2O3, ZnO and In2O3 leads to a heterogeneity of IGZO target properties. Thus, it is necessary to study the synthesis of Ga2O3 nano powder for uniformity of the components in the target.
Here, Ga2O3 powders were synthesized by precipitation method and polymerized complex method. The phase transition temperature, microstructure and crystal structure of Ga2O3 powders were investigated. In order to observe the crystal structural change of Ga2O3 powders synthesized by precipitation and polymerized complex method, in-situ high temperature XRD analysis was performed from 25 to 1000 ℃.
The characteristics of Ga2O3 powders were investigated with various aging temperature, aging time and concentration of Ga(NO3)3 in precipitation method. The properties of Ga2O3 powder were significantly affected by the concentration of Ga(NO3)3, while no significant change of the properties of Ga2O3 powder was observed with various aging time. Particle size of Ga2O3 ranges from 1 to 4 μm.
The synthesis variables of polymerized complex method were calcinations temperature and concentration of Ga(NO3)3. The effect of the concentration of Ga(NO3)3 on the particle size decreased with increase of calcination temperature.
The result of in-situ high temperature XRD analysis indicate that Ga2O3 powders were synthesized by different mechanisms in polymerized complex method and precipitation method.