Gallium (4 wt%) doped ZnO (GZO) thin films were deposited on hydrothermally grown ZnO buffered and non-buffered MgAl2O4 (1 1 1) substrates by RF magnetron sputtering technique at a growth temperature of 250 degrees C. The epitaxial ZnO buffer layer was deposited on the MgAl2O4 (1 1 1) substrate by a hydrothermal technique using aqueous solutions of zinc nitrate hexahydrate, ammonium nitrate and ammonium hydroxide at 90 degrees C. The effect of the ZnO buffer layer on the crystallinity, epitaxial nature, surface morphology, optical and electrical properties of the GZO thin films is investigated. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy showed that the hydrothermally grown ZnO buffer layer and GZO thin film grown on the hydrothermally grown ZnO buffered substrate were grown epitaxially with an orientation relationship of (0 0 0 1)[1 1 (2) over bar 0](GZO)parallel to(1 1 1)[1 1 (2) over bar ]MgAl2O4. However, the GZO thin films grown on the non-buffered substrate are polycrystalline in nature with a hexagonal wurtzite phase. The room temperature photoluminescence spectra of the GZO epitaxial thin films grown on the buffered substrate revealed a sharp near band edge emission peak and a lower broad deep-level emission peak compared to the polycrystalline GZO thin film grown on a non-buffered substrate. The electrical resistivity of the GZO thin films is found to be proved from 4.69 x 10(-3) to 2.27 x 10(-3) Omega cm by introducing the hydrothermally grown ZnO buffer layer between the GZO thin film and MgAl2O4 (1 1 1) substrate. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.