The semiconductor ZnO has gained substantial interest in the research community in part because of its large exciton binding energy (60meV) which could lead to lasing action based on exciton recombination even above room temperature. Even though research focusing on ZnO goes back many decades, the renewed interest is fueled by availability of high-quality substrates and reports of p-type conduction and ferromagnetic behavior when doped with transitions metals, both of which remain controversial. It is this renewed interest in ZnO which forms the basis of this review. As mentioned already, ZnO is not new to the semiconductor field, with studies of its lattice parameter dating back to 1935 by Bunn [Proc. Phys. Soc. London 47, 836 (1935)], studies of its vibrational properties with Raman scattering in 1966 by Damen et al. [Phys. Rev. 142, 570 (1966)], detailed optical studies in 1954 by Mollwo [Z. Angew. Phys. 6, 257 (1954)], and its growth by chemical-vapor transport in 1970 by Galli and Coker [Appl. Phys. ...

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A comprehensive review of zno materials and devices

We report on the photoluminescent characteristics of ZnO single crystal nanorods grown by catalyst-free metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. From photoluminescence (PL) spectra of the nanorods at 10 K, several PL peaks were observed at 3.376, 3.364, 3.360, and 3.359 eV. The PL peak at 3.376 eV is attributed to a free exciton peak while the other peaks are ascribed to neutral donor bound exciton peaks. The observation of the free exciton peak at 10 K indicates that ZnO nanorods prepared by the catalyst-free method are of high optical quality.

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Excitonic emissions observed in ZnO single crystal nanorods

This article focuses on one-dimensional (1D) semiconductor subwavelength optical elements and assesses their potential use as active and passive components in photonic devices. An updated overview of their optical properties, including spontaneous emission, ultrafast carrier dynamics, cavity resonance feedback (lasing), photodetection, and waveguiding, is provided. The ability to physically manipulate these structures on surfaces to form simple networks and assemblies is the first step toward integrating chemically synthesized nanomaterials into photonic circuitry. These high index semiconductor nanowires are capable of efficiently guiding light through liquid media, suggesting a role for such materials in microfluidics-based biosensing applications.

Semiconductor Nanowires for Subwavelength Photonics Integration

Construction of heterojunctions has aroused great interest recently in the photocatalysis field because of the special electronic band structure and unique physicochemical properties. In this work, a novel 0D/3D CuO/ZnO heterojunction was obtained via in situ deposition of CuO nanoparticles on the flowerlike ZnO surface using the wet chemistry method. After depositing CuO nanoparticles onto the ZnO, the CuO/ZnO heterojunction exhibits enhanced visible-light harvesting and effective separation of the photogenerated electron–hole pairs compared with those in the pure ZnO. The photocatalytic removal efficiency of phenol over the CuO/ZnO heterojunction is up to 78% under the irradiation of the light, which is ∼2 and ∼4 times higher than those of the pristine ZnO and CuO, respectively. This composite also presents good durability and stability for phenol degradation in the photocatalytic reactions. Additionally, in the photodegradation system of the CuO/ZnO heterojunction, the superoxide radicals (•O2–) and hy...

Synthesis of the 0D/3D CuO/ZnO Heterojunction with Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity

This Letter describes size-controlled photocatalytic activity of ZnO nanoparticles coated with glutathione-protected gold nanoparticles with diameters of 1.1, 1.6, and 2.8 nm. The photocatalytic activity of the ZnO–Au composites was found to increase with increasing gold size for both oxidative and reductive catalytic reactions. Photoluminescence decay dynamics of the composites showed that the electron-transfer rate from the photoexcited ZnO to gold nanoparticle also increased as the gold size increased. These results demonstrate that the photogenerated electron transfer and the resulting catalytic activity of the composites can be controlled by the size of the mediating gold capacitors.

http://www.dstuns.iitm.ac.in/grouppresentations/2011/Size-Controlled.pdf

Size-Controlled Electron Transfer and Photocatalytic Activity of ZnO–Au Nanoparticle Composites

We report on photoluminescence (PL) spectra of ZnO films grown by low pressure metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. For PL measurements, high quality ZnO thin films were epitaxially grown on Al2O3(0001) substrates. Time-integrated PL spectra of the films at 10 K clearly exhibited free A and B excitons at 3.376 and 3.382 eV and bound exciton peaks at 3.360, 3.364, and 3.367 eV. With increasing temperature, intensities of the bound exciton peaks drastically decreased and a free exciton peak was dominant above 40 K. Furthermore, time-resolved PL measurements at the free exciton peak were carried out at room temperature. The decay profiles were of double-exponential form, and the decay time constants of 180 ps and 1.0 ns were obtained using a least-square fit of the data.

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H. D. Cheong

Papers

Time-resolved and time-integrated photoluminescence in ZnO epilayers grown on Al2O3(0001) by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy

Time-resolved and time-integrated photoluminescence in ZnO epilayers grown on Al 2 O 3 Ñ0001Ö by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy