The P-doped ZnTe layers have been grown on ZnTe (100) substrates by atmospheric pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy using tris-dimethylaminophosphorus (TDMAP). The effects of dopant transport rate upon the photoluminescence and electrical properties of ZnTe layers have been investigated. ZnTe layer with a carrier concentration of 1.3 x 10(18) cm(-3) is obtained by using this dopant source. Most ZnTe epitaxial layers exhibit strong band-edge emission at room temperature. It is expected that TDMAP is a useful dopant source, compared to tertiary-butylphosphine. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.