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Why is indium tin oxide both electrically conductive and transparent?

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Figure 1: Schematic diagram of a zirconia oxygen sensor used to monitor automobile exhaust gases. The sensor, approximately the size of a spark plug, is fitted into the exhaust manifold of an automobile engine. The thimble-shaped zirconia sensor, sandwiched between thin layers of porous platinum, is exposed on its interior to outside air and on its exterior to exhaust gas passing through slits in the sensor shield. The two platinum surfaces serve as electrodes, conducting a voltage across the zirconia that varies according to the difference in oxygen content between the exhaust gas and the outside air.
conductive ceramics Figure 1: Schematic diagram of a zirconia oxygen sensor used to monitor automobile exhaust gases. The sensor, approximately the size of a spark plug, is fitted into the exhaust manifold of an automobile engine. The thimble-shaped zirconia sensor, sandwiched between thin layers of porous platinum, is exposed on its interior to outside air and on its exterior to exhaust gas passing through slits in the sensor shield. The two platinum surfaces serve as electrodes, conducting a voltage across the zirconia that varies according to the difference in oxygen content between the exhaust gas and the outside air.

Indium tin oxide (ITO) achieves the dual properties of electrical conductivity and optical transparency through a combination of a large band gap and the strategic incorporation of electron donors.1

The material's transparency is a result of its large band gap, which prevents the absorption of visible light. Simultaneously, the introduction of sufficient electron donors creates an optimal electron concentration that enables electronic conductivity without compromising optical transmission. Because of these unique characteristics, ITO is widely utilized in the electronics industry for applications such as thin transparent electrodes in solar cells and liquid-crystal displays, as well as thin-film resistors in integrated circuits.1