By controlling the deposition parameters of low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) grown ZnO transparent conductive oxide (TCO), we show that it is possible to achieve a switch of crystallographic orientations and to obtain novel surface nanotexture. The new layers are (0 0 0 2) oriented and exhibit light scattering at larger angles than state-of-the-art TCO used in thin film silicon solar cells. This property translates into a strong enhancement of the top amorphous cell current in micromorph tandem devices. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.