Vertical single-crystal ZnO nanowires grown on ZnO:Ga/glass templates

Vertical single-crystal ZnO nanowires with uniform diameter and uniform length were selectively grown on ZnO:Ga/glass templates at 600/spl deg/C by a self-catalyzed vapor-liquid-solid process without any metal catalyst. It was found that the ZnO nanowires are grown preferred oriented in the [002] direction with a small X-ray diffraction full-width half-maximum. Photoluminescence, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy measurements also confirmed good crystal quality of our ZnO nanowires. Field emitters using these ZnO nanowires were also fabricated. It was found that threshold field of the fabricated field emitters was 14 V//spl mu/m. With an applied electric field of 24 V//spl mu/m, it was found that the emission current density was around 0.1 mA/cm/sup 2/.     

Optical and field emission characteristics of anodic aluminium oxide/ZnO hybrid nanostructure

Arrays of ZnO nanowires (NWs) were fabricated within the well-distributed pores of anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) template by a simple chemical method. The photoluminescence (PL) and field emission (FE) properties of the AAO/ZnO NWs hybrid structure were investigated in detail. The hybrid nanostructure exhibits interesting PL characteristics. ZnO NWs exhibit UV emission at 378 nm and two prominent blue-green emissions at about 462 and 508 nm. Intense blue emission from the AAO template itself was observed at around 430 nm. Herein, for the first time we report the FE characteristics of the ZnO/AAO hybrid structure to show the influence of the AAO template on the FE property of the hybrid structure. It is found that the turn-on electric field of the vertically grown and aligned ZnO NWs within the pores of AAO template is lower than the entangled unaligned ZnO NWs extracted from the template. Although the AAO template exhibits no FE current but it helps to achieve better FE property of the ZnO NWs through better alignment. The turn-on electric field of aligned NWs was found to be 3 V μm⁻¹ at a current of 0.1 μA. Results indicate that the AAO embedded ZnO NW hybrid structure may find useful applications in luminescent and field emission display devices.     

Enhanced photoluminescence and field-emission behavior of vertically well aligned arrays of In-doped ZnO Nanowires

Vertically oriented well-aligned Indium doped ZnO nanowires (NWs) have been successfully synthesized on Au-coated Zn substrate by controlled thermal evaporation. The effect of indium dopant on the optical and field-emission properties of these well-aligned ZnO NWs is investigated. The doped NWs are found to be single crystals grown along the c-axis. The composition of the doped NWs is confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray photospectroscopy (XPS). The photoluminescence (PL) spectra of doped NWs having a blue-shift in the UV region show a prominent tuning in the optical band gap, without any significant peak relating to intrinsic defects. The turn-on field of the field emission is found to be ～2.4 V μm(-1) and an emission current density of 1.13 mA cm(-2) under the field of 5.9 V μm(-1). The field enhancement factor β is estimated to be 9490 ± 2, which is much higher than that of any previous report. Furthermore, the doped NWs exhibit good emission current stability with a variation of less than 5% during a 200 s under a field of 5.9 V μm(-1). The superior field emission properties are attributed to the good alignment, high aspect ratio, and better crystallinity of In-doped NWs.     

ZnO nanowires hydrothermally grown on PET polymer substrates and their characteristics

Zinc oxide nanowires (ZnO NWs) were successfully synthesized on the ITO/PET polymer substrates by a hydrothermal method. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy investigations were carried out to characterize the crystallinity, surface morphologies, and orientations of these NWs, respectively. The influence of NW surface morphologies on the optical and electrical properties of ZnO NWs was studied. The hydrothermally grown ZnO NWs with direct band gap of 3.21 eV emitted ultraviolet photoluminescence of 406 nm at room temperature. Field emission measurements revealed that the threshold electric fields (Eth, current density of 1 mA/cm2) of ZnO NWs/ITO/PET and ZnO NWs/ZnO/ITO/PET are 1.6 and 2.2 V/microm with the enhancement factors, beta values, of 3275 and 4502, respectively. Furthermore, the field emission performance of ZnO NWs deposited on the ITO/PET substrate can be enhanced by illumination with Eth of 1.3 V/microm and displays a maximum emission current density of 18 mA/cm2. The ZnO NWs successfully grown on polymer substrate with high transmittance, low threshold electric field, and high emission current density may be applied to a flexible field emission display in the future.     

Field-emission characteristics of Al-doped ZnO nanostructures hydrothermally synthesized at low temperature

The aluminum-doped ZnO (AZO) nanostructures with different Al concentrations were synthesized on AZO/glass substrate via a simple hydrothermal growth method at a temperature as low as 85 degrees C. The morphologies, crystallinity, optical emission properties, and chemical bonding states of AZO nanostructures show evident dependence on the aluminum dosage. The morphologies of AZO nanostructures were changed from vertically aligned nanowires (NWs), and NWs coexisted with nanosheets (NSs), to complete NSs in respect of the Al-dosages of 0-3 at.%, 5 at.%, and 7 at.%, correspondingly. The undoped ZnO and lightly Al-doped AZO (< or = 3 at.%) NWs are single-crystalline wurtzite structure. In contrast, heavily Al-doped AZO sample is polycrystalline. The AZO nanostructure with 3 at.% Al-dosages reveals the optimal crystallinity and less structural defects, reflecting the longest carrier lifetime and highest conductivity. Consequently, the field-emission characteristics of such an AZO emitter can exhibit the higher current density, larger field-enhancement factor (beta) of 3131, lower turn-on field of 2.17 V/microm, and lower threshold field of 3.43 V/microm.     

An advanced fabrication method of highly ordered ZnO nanowire arrays on silicon substrates by atomic layer deposition

In this work, the controlled fabrication of highly ordered ZnO nanowire (NW) arrays on silicon substrates is reported. Si NWs fabricated by a combination of phase shift lithography and etching are used as a template and are subsequently substituted by ZnO NWs with a dry-etching technique and atomic layer deposition. This fabrication technique allows the vertical ZnO NWs to be fabricated on 4 in Si wafers. Room temperature photoluminescence and micro-photoluminescence are used to observe the optical properties of the atomic layer deposition (ALD) based ZnO NWs. The sharp UV luminescence observed from the ALD ZnO NWs is unexpected for the polycrystalline nanostructure. Surprisingly, the defect related luminescence is much decreased compared to an ALD ZnO film deposited at the same time ona plane substrate. Electrical characterization was carried out by using nanomanipulators. With the p-type Si substrate and the n-type ZnO NWs the nanodevices represent p–n NW diodes.The nanowire diodes show a very high breakthrough potential which implies that the ALD ZnO NWs can be used for future electronic applications.     

Investigation on light emission in light-emitting diodes constructed with n-ZnO and p-Si nanowires

The light emission was investigated in light-emitting diodes (LEDs) constructed with n-ZnO and p-Si nanowires (NWs). ZnO NWs were synthesized by thermal chemical vapor deposition and Si NWs were formed by crystallographic wet etching of a Si wafer. The LEDs were fabricated using the NWs via dielectrophoresis (DEP) and direct transfer methods. The DEP method enabled to align the ZnO NW at the position that led to p-n heterojunction diodes by crossing with the transferred Si NW. The I-V curve of the p-n heterojunction diode showed the well-defined current-rectifying characteristic, with a turn-on voltage of 3 V. The electroluminescence spectrum in the dark showed the strong emission at approximately 385 nm and the broad emission centered at approximately 510 nm, at a forward bias of 30 V. Under the illumination of 325-nm-wavelength light, the luminescence intensity at 385 nm was dramatically enhanced, compared to that in the dark, probably due to the electric-field-induced enhancement of luminescence.     

Combination of surface texturing and nanostructure coating for reduction of light reflection in ZnO/Si heterojunction thin film solar cell

In this study, we report a single heterojunction solar cell based on n-type zinc oxide/p-type silicon. Three different solar cells were fabricated based on ZnO thin film on Si substrate, ZnO nanorods on Si substrate, and ZnO nanorods on micro-pyramidal structure of Si substrate. The comparison between these three kinds of solar cells was studied. Pyramidal structure of silicon was fabricated using chemical etching technique of p-type Si (100). The chemical solution consists of NaOH, isopropyl alcohol and hydrazine hydrate. The results showed that Si micro-pyramids can enhance optical absorption of Si substrates by increasing surface area and entrapping of incident light. For fabrication of uniform ZnO nanorods, a seed layer of ZnO was deposited on Si substrates via radio frequency magnetron sputtering technique. This layer can be used as an active n-type material in heterojunction solar cells as well. ZnO nanostructures can increase light absorption due to their high specific surface area. The combination of ZnO nanorods and Si micro-pyramids can enhance light trapping effect and increase the efficiency of solar cells. The structural and morphology of samples were studied using field-emission scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and X-ray diffractometry while the optical properties were investigated using photoluminescence and reflectance spectrometry. The efficiency and fill factor of solar cells were obtained from current–voltage characteristics using a solar simulator and a source-meter. The results showed that the efficiency of solar cell based on nanostructures of ZnO/micropyramids of Si is highly increased due to high anti-reflective behavior of this sample.     

Enhanced field-emission from a mixture of carbon nanotubes, ZnO tetrapods and conductive particles

We report the enhancement of field-emission current from a mixture of carbon nanotubes, ZnO tetrapod-like nano structures, and conductive particles. Carbon nanotubes are deposited on the electrode as the field emitters. A MgO layer is printed around the cathode electrode, and ZnO tetrapod-like nano structures are deposited on this layer for the generation of secondary emission electrons. A few conductive particles are also distributed on the MgO layer by spraying or screen-printing. These conductive particles enhance the transverse electric field around the cathode electrode. Consequently, more primary electrons emitted from the carbon nanotubes bombard on the ZnO tetrapods, and secondary emission electrons and scattered electrons are yielded. Finally, the field-emission current is enhanced obviously. As experimental results shown, a high field-emission current about 32 mA in a direct current emission mode has been obtained from a 0.5 cm2 emission site when an electric field of 9 V/microm is applied between cathode and anode. Compared with a conventional carbon nanotube cathode, the field-emission current has been improved about 80%.     

Fabrication of carbon nanotubes field emission cathode by composite plating

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have high aspect ratio and have great potential to be applied as the field emission cathode because of its large field enhancement factor. In this work, a high performance carbon nanotube field emission cathode (CNTFC) was fabricated by using a composite plating method. The CNTs were purified by acid solutions and then dispersed in electrobath with nickel ions at temperatures of 60, 70, or 80 degrees C for the electroless plating process on glass substrate. The resulting CNT-Ni composite film has strong adhesion on the glass substrate. The degree of graphitization and the microstructure of the CNTFCs were studied by Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The field emission properties of the CNTFCs show a low turn-on electric field E(on) of about 1.2 V/microm, and a low threshold electric field E(th) of about 1.9 V/microm. Such a composite plating method could be applied to the fabrication of large area CNT field-emission displays.     

Preparation of ferroelectric Ba(Ti/sub 0.85/Sn/sub 0.15/)O/sub 3/ thin films by metal-organic decomposition

Ferroelectric Ba(Ti/sub 0.85/Sn/sub 0.15/)O/sub 3/ (BTS/sub 15/) thin film is newly prepared on the Pt/Ti/SiO/sub 2//Si substrate by metal-organic decomposition. The firing condition is determined by thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis. The BTS/sub 15/ thin film with a flat surface and uniform thickness is obtained by spin coating in N/sub 2/ atmosphere that avoids moisture. The BTS/sub 15/ film has a perovskite phase and a preferential [110] texture. It is also found that the crystalline structure is cubic at 24/spl deg/C with a lattice constant of 4.01 /spl Aring/, and a grain size of about 30 nm was estimated by Scherrer equation and SEM image. From P-E hysteresis loop at 20/spl deg/C, the polarization at E=0 and the electric field at P=0 are found to be 1.07 /spl mu/C/cm/sup 2/ and 24.0 kV/cm, respectively. It is observed that the dielectric constant decreases monotonously from about 830 to 630 with increasing temperature ranging from 20/spl deg/C to 50/spl deg/C. Finally, it is found that the BTS/sub 15/ thin film shows a sufficient ferroelectricity and is an attractive material for functional ferroelectric devices, such as thermal-type infrared sensors.     

PLD法生长高质量 ZnO薄膜及其光电导特性研究

采用脉冲激光沉积（PLD）法在单晶Si（100）衬底上生长ZnO薄膜，以X射线衍射（XRD）和场发射扫描电镜（SEM）等手段分析了所得ZnO薄膜的晶体结构和微观形貌．结果表明，随着衬底温度和薄膜生长时氧分压的增加，ZnO薄膜的晶体结构和化学计量比得到显著改善．优化工艺（700℃，20Pa）下生长的ZnO薄膜呈c轴高度择优取向，柱状晶垂直衬底表面生长，结构致密均匀．以不同暗电阻的ZnO薄膜为材料，利用剥离（1ift-off）技术制备了MSM结构ZnO光电导型紫外探测器．紫外光照射前后的I-V特性测试表明ZnO薄膜产生非常明显的光电导现象，分析了其光电响应机理．     

Efficient field emission from tetrapod-like zinc oxide nanoneedles

Tetrapod-like zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoneedles were fabricated using a simple and economical method of rapid heating high purity zinc powders at 900 °C. No catalyst and vacuum were employed in the experiment. Field-emission measurements showed that the turn-on field of the synthesized tetrapod-like ZnO nanoneedles was as low as 1.8 V/μm at the emission current density of 1.0 μA/cm² and the emission current density reached 1.0 mA/cm² under an applied field of about 3.9 V/μm. The low turn-on field, high emission current density, and good electron emission stability make the ZnO nanoneedles one of the promising candidates for field-emission displays.     

Hierarchical Metal/Semiconductor Nanostructure for Efficient Water Splitting

A hierarchically patterned metal/semiconductor (gold nanoparticles/ZnO nanowires) nanostructure with maximized photon trapping effects is fabricated via interference lithography (IL) for plasmon enhanced photo‐electrochemical water splitting in the visible region of light. Compared with unpatterned (plain) gold nanoparticles‐coated ZnO NWs (Au NPs/ZnO NWs), the hierarchically patterned Au NPs/ZnO NWs hybrid structures demonstrate higher and wider absorption bands of light leading to increased surface enhanced Raman scattering due to the light trapping effects achieved by the combination of two different nanostructure dimensions; furthermore, pronounced plasmonic enhancement of water splitting is verified in the hierarchically patterned Au NPs/ZnO NWs structures in the visible region. The excellent performance of the hierarchically patterned Au NPs/ZnO NWs indicates that the combination of pre‐determined two different dimensions has great potential for application in solar energy conversion, light emitting diodes, as well as SERS substrates and photoelectrodes for water splitting.     

The effect of metal layers on the morphology and optical properties of hydrothermally grown zinc oxide nanowires

If the silicon industry is to successfully integrate ZnO nanowires (NWs) into existing devices to fully utilise the piezoelectric or optical properties of ZnO NWs, then a detailed understanding of the effect of metal interconnects on the morphology of the NWs during growth needs to be obtained. In this study, ZnO NWs were hydrothermally grown at 90 °C on Au, Ni and a Si substrate control to mimic the typical surfaces of a MetalMUMPs MEMS chip. The growth rate was significantly affected by the metal film below the ZnO seed layer, which was mainly attributed to changes in the roughness and grain size of the seed layer deposited, with the growth rate decreasing with increasing roughness. The growth rate on Si and Au surfaces also increased when isolated from the Ni samples, suggesting that Ni cations released in the solution could also inhibit growth by electrostatically attaching to the NWs surface and acting as a barrier to the incorporation of zinc ions. Furthermore, photoluminescence studies show the addition of metal layers to the substrate reduces the optical quality of the produced ZnO NWs.     

掺砷多晶硅边缘场发射阴极阵列的特性研究

提出了一种T形结构的边缘场发射阴极，它具有比通常的场发射体的发射面积大得多的特点。首次采用低压化学气相沉积技术生长内层重掺砷、外层较掺砷的多晶硅薄膜；利用氢氟酸／硝酸／冰醋酸腐蚀液对不同掺砷浓度多晶硅选择性腐蚀的特点，成功制备了T形结构的多晶硅边缘场发射阵列（FEA）；本方法对于制备类似结构的边缘场发射器件有意义。在此基础上建立了三极管几何模型，最后采用有限差分法对该三极管模型进行了静电分析。     

Growth of well-aligned ZnO nanorod arrays on Si substrates by thermal evaporation of Cu-Zn alloy powders

Well-aligned ZnO nanorod arrays with uniform diameters and lengths have been fabricated on a Si substrate by simple thermal evaporation of Cu-Zn alloy powders in the presence of oxygen without using a template, catalyst, or pre-deposited ZnO seed layer. The ZnO nanorods are characterized by X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and the growth mechanism is suggested. The nanorods have a single-crystal hexagonal structure and grow along the (0001) direction. Their diameters range from 200 to 400 nm and the lengths are up to several micrometers. The photoluminescence (PL) and Raman spectra disclose the optical properties of the products. The PL spectra show intense near-band ultraviolet emission at 378 nm from the nanorod arrays. The well-aligned ZnO nanorod arrays have a low turn-on field of 6.1 V/microm, suggesting good field emission properties. The simple synthesis methodology in conjunction with the good field emission and optical properties make the study both scientifically and technologically interesting.     

Electroluminescence and rectifying properties of heterojunction LEDs based on ZnO nanorods

n-ZnO NR/p-Si and n-ZnO NR/p-PEDOT/PSS heterojunction light-emitting diodes (LEDs) have been fabricated with ZnO nanorods (NRs) grown by a low-temperature method as well as by employing pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The low-temperature method involves growing the ZnO nanorods by the reaction of water with zinc metal. The current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of the heterojunctions show good rectifying diode characteristics. The electroluminescence (EL) spectra of the nanorods show an emission band at around 390?nm and defect related bands in the 400-550?nm region. Room-temperature electroluminescence is detected under forward bias for both the heterostructures. With the low-temperature grown nanorods, the defect related bands in the 400-550?nm range are more intense in the EL spectra, whereas with the PLD grown nanorods, only the 390?nm band is prominent.     

Position-controlled ZnO nanoflower arrays grown on glass substrates for electron emitter application

The electron emission of position-controlled grown ZnO nanoflowers was investigated for application in cold cathode electron emission devices. ZnO nanoflower arrays, composed of several nanoneedles with sharp tips, were grown selectively on a conducting glass substrate using a chemical solution deposition method. The morphology and position of the ZnO nanoflowers were controlled by preparing polymethylmethacrylate submicron patterns using electron-beam lithography. Without the patterns, in contrast, vertical ZnO nanoneedles were randomly grown on the substrates with high density. Several samples prepared at the same conditions exhibited almost the same nanoflower morphology and field emission characteristics. Comparison of the field emission characteristics of the ZnO nanoflower arrays and ZnO nanoneedles showed that the arrays had excellent electron emission characteristics, with a low turn-on electric field of 0.13?V?μm(-1) at 0.1?μA?cm(-2) and a high emission current density of 0.8?mA?cm(-2) in an applied electric field of 9.0?V?μm(-1). Furthermore, light-emitting devices made using ZnO nanoflower arrays demonstrated strong light emission, and micropixels for display application were clearly displayed.     

Fabrication of carbon nanotube-emitters on Ag-Cu alloy film by thermal welding

A field emission electron source was fabricated on a Si substrate using Ag-Cu alloy (ACa) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The ACa was adopted as a binder material due to its excellent electrical conductivity, oxidation stability, and suitable melting point (783 degrees C). The surface morphology of the ACa-film was improved by introducing an Nb layer as an adhesion layer between the ACa-film and the Si substrate. The ACa-film thickness was varied from 100 to 500 nm. The spray method was employed to deposit a CNT film on the ACa/Nb/Si substrate for large area fabrication. After annealing the substrate at 700 degrees C for 10 min, the CNT film was tightly welded on the ACa-films, and the CNT-emitters fabricated on the 400-nm-thick ACa-film exhibited high current density and stability with a low turn-on voltage. It is worth noting that ACa could be applied to the glass substrate because the CNT-emitters fabricated at 500 degrees C exhibited good field emission characteristics.