A model for the complex dielectric function appropriate for use with fluorine doped ZnO transparent conductors has been developed. The model uses three components; a Drude term, a Lorentz oscillator, and a term accounting for inter-band transitions. It was used to generate the complex dielectric permittivity for ZnO: F, which in turn was used to fit experimentally determined optical transmission data for sputtered films. Use of this methodology to provide data for modelling the optical transmission through the window layer stacks of solar cell devices is commented upon. The experimentally determined Burstein-Moss shifts and carrier concentrations for a series of films were used to calculate a value of m(e)=0.33 +/- 0.8 m(0) according to the model's assumptions. (C) 2011 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.