Zinc oxide(ZnO) thin films were cathodically deposited on ITO glass from an aqueous zinc nitrate electrolyte. Three main fabrication parameters were taken into account : deposition potential, solution concentration and growth temperature. Different layers of ZnO thin films grown by varying the three parameters were studied by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope and optical absorption spectroscopy. The prepared ZnO thin films were shown as a hexagonal wurtzite structure on the X-ray diffraction patterns and the good quality of ZnO thin films were obtained by potentiostatic cathodic deposition at -0.7V vs. Ag/AgCl reference electrode onto ITO glass from aqueous 0.1 mol/liter zinc nitrate electrolyte at $60^{circ}C$.