ZnO-based double-heterostructure ultraviolet light-emitting diodes (LEDs) were fabricated on n-type Zn-polar ZnO substrates by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy employing mixture gas plasma of N-2 and O-2 as the N source. By using mixture gas plasma of N-2 with a little added O-2, the number of N atoms increased and N-2 molecules decreased, as confirmed by optical emission spectrometry. The fabricated LEDs had an ultraviolet near-band-emission of around 380 nm. The integrated electroluminescence intensity of the LED fabricated using N-2 and O-2 plasma was more than 10 times higher than that of an LED fabricated using N-2 plasma. (C) 2011 The Japan Society of Applied Physics