One-pot hydrothermal synthesis of heterostructured ZnO/ZnS nanorod arrays with high ethanol-sensing properties

ZnO/ZnS heterostructured nanorod arrays with uniform diameter and length were synthesized from zinc substrates in a one-pot procedure by using a simple hydrothermal method. Structural characterization by HRTEM indicated that the heterostructured nanorods were composed of parallel segments of wurtzite-type ZnO and zinc-blende ZnS, with a distinct interface along the axial direction, which revealed the epitaxial relationship, ZnO (1010) and ZnS (111). The as-prepared ZnO/ZnS nanorods showed only two green emissions at around 523?nm and 576?nm. We also found that the nanorods exhibited high sensitivity to ethanol at relatively low temperatures, owing to their smaller size and structure.     

Rational synthetic strategy: From ZnO nanorods to ZnS nanotubes

We demonstrate here that ZnS nanotubes can be successfully synthesized via a facile conversion process from ZnO nanorods precursors. During the conversion process, ZnO nanorods are first prepared as sacrificial templates and then converted into tubular ZnO/ZnS core/shell naonocomposites through a hydrothermal sulfidation treatment by using thioacetamide (TAA) as sulfur source. ZnS nanotubes are finally obtained through the removal of ZnO cores of tubular ZnO/ZnS core/shell naonocomposites by KOH treatment. The photoluminescence (PL) characterization of the as-prepared products shows much enhanced PL emission of tubular ZnO/ZnS core/shell nanocomposites compared with their component counterparts. The probable mechanism of conversion process is also proposed based on the experimental results.     

ZnO/ZnS Heterostructured Nanorod Arrays and Their Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Semiconducting heterostructures have been widely applied in photocatalytic hydrogen evolution due to their variable band gaps and high energy conversion efficiency. As typical semiconducting heterostructures, ZnO/ZnS heterostructured nanorod arrays (HNRAs) have been obtained through a simple anion‐exchange process in this work. Structural characterization indicates that the heterostructured nanorods (HNRs) are all composed of hexagonal wurtzite ZnO core and cubic zinc‐blende ZnS shell. As expected, the as‐obtained one‐dimensional heterostructures not only lower the energy barrier but also enhance the separation ability of photogenerated carriers in photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. Through comparisons, it is found that 1D ZnO/ZnS HNRAs exhibit much better performance in photocatalytic hydrogen evolution than 1D ZnO nanorod arrays (NRAs) and 1D ZnS NRAs. The maximum H₂ production is 19.2 mmol h^?1 for 0.05 g catalyst under solar‐simulated light irradiation at 25 °C and the corresponding quantum efficiency is 13.9 %, which goes beyond the economical threshold of photocatalytic hydrogen evolution technology.     

One‐Pot Hydrothermal Synthesis of Heterostructured ZnO/ZnS Nanorod Arrays with High Ethanol‐Sensing Properties

ZnO/ZnS heterostructured nanorod arrays with uniform diameter and length were synthesized from zinc substrates in a one‐pot procedure by using a simple hydrothermal method. Structural characterization by HRTEM indicated that the heterostructured nanorods were composed of parallel segments of wurtzite‐type ZnO and zinc‐blende ZnS, with a distinct interface along the axial direction, which revealed the epitaxial relationship, ZnO (10$\bar 1$ 0) and ZnS ($\bar 1$ 1$\bar 1$ ). The as‐prepared ZnO/ZnS nanorods showed only two green emissions at around 523 nm and 576 nm. We also found that the nanorods exhibited high sensitivity to ethanol at relatively low temperatures, owing to their smaller size and structure.     

硫化锌与硫化锌/氧化锌异质结纳米线的化学气相沉积法制备与表征

介绍一种利用石墨还原快速制备大量硫化锌纳米线的方法,并分别合成了超晶格型、双轴型、核/壳型的硫化锌/氧化锌异质结纳米线。所合成的硫化锌纳米线存在六方纤锌矿和立方闪锌矿两种晶型,纳米线长度达几十微米,直径在20-50 nm,直径均匀且产量很高。在具有双轴型的硫化锌/氧化锌异质结中,首次发现具有超结构特征的氧化锌。HRTEM分析表明,硫化锌/氧化锌超晶格异质结界面为ZB-ZnS(111)∥ZnO(0001),而核/壳型异质结界面为W-ZnS(0001)∥ZnO(0001),这三个晶面分别为各自晶体的极性面,即所合成的硫化锌/氧化锌异质结中极性面相互平行。对ZnS 和ZnS/ZnO 异质结的生长机制进行了探讨,并对硫化锌纳米线与硫化锌/氧化锌异质结的光学性质进行了分析。     

Hierarchical saw-like ZnO nanobelt/ZnS nanowire heterostructures induced by polar surfaces

Saw-like nanostructures composed of single-crystalline ZnO nanobelts and single-crystalline ZnS nanowires have been successfully synthesized by a vapor-solid process. Several techniques, including scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy, were used to investigate the structures, morphology, and photoluminescence properties of the products. Due to the similar crystal habits of wurtzite ZnO and ZnS with chemically active Zn-terminated (0001) and chemically inactive O-terminated (or S-terminated) (000) polar surfaces, hierarchical saw-like nanostructures were considered to be formed by the initiation of a chemically active Zn-terminated ZnO (0001) polar surface. Photoluminescence properties of the heterostructures, different from pure ZnO nanobelts or ZnS nanowires, were also studied at room temperature.     

A study on electrodeposited of ZnO/ZnS heterostructures

ZnO/ZnS heterostructures were synthesized by a two steps electrochemical deposition method. Firstly, ZnS layer was deposited from an aqueous solution containing Na₂S₂O₃ and ZnSO₄ onto indium-doped tin oxide (ITO) coating glass substrate at two deposition potentials. Then, ZnO nanostructures were deposited from an aqueous solution of Zn(NO₃) onto ZnS surface. The as-obtained samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman and UV-visible analysis. The results indicate that the electrodeposition of ZnS layer at ?0.9 V give the best proprieties of ZnO/ZnS heterostructures. Homogeneous and uniform surface of ZnO/ZnS heterostructure was confirmed by AFM images. The XRD patterns indicates a high crystallinity of ZnO/ZnS. A high transmittance of 65% was also noted from UV-Visible spectra and band gap energy as large as 3.6?eV was found.     

Controllable synthesis of ZnO nanorod and prism arrays in a large area

ZnO nanorod and nanoprism arrays have been directly synthesized on a large-area zinc substrate via a convenient solution method. The products were characterized with XRD, SEM, HRTEM, and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The influence of the solvent and the concentration of NaOH on the size and shapes of the as-prepared ZnO samples have been studied. It was found that ZnO nanorod or nanowire arrays were fabricated in alcohol, whereas ZnO nanoprisms with pyramid tips were produced in an alcohol-water mixture. The diameters of the nanorods or nanoprisms became thicker when a higher concentration of NaOH was used. Room-temperature PL spectra of the ZnO products showed a UV emission and a broad green band. The mechanism of the nanorods and nanoprisms in two systems is briefly discussed.     

First-principles Studies on Electronic Structures of Ga-doped ZnO and ZnS

First-principles calculations have been performed to clarify the differences of the electronic structures of Ga-doped ZnO and ZnS. Results show the local density approximation and local density approximation+U calculations are in good qualitative agreement with each other. After doping, impurity states appear near the Fermi level in both ZnO and ZnS cases.When ZnO is doped, the impurity states are delocalized in the whole conduction band. On the contrary, when ZnS is doped, though the p state of Ga is also delocalized, the s state is localized near the Fermi level. Partial charge density distributions of the frontier orbital show the same information. After an exchange of the crystal structures of ZnO and ZnS,results remain unchanged. The localized Ga s state accounts for the bad electrical properties of Ga-doped ZnS.     

ZnS nanoparticle decorated ZnO nanowall network: investigation through electron microscopy and secondary ion mass spectrometry

We report on the fabrication of ZnO nanowall networks decorated with ZnS nanostructures on aluminum substrates using simple chemical route. The structural features and elemental constituents of the ZnS/ZnO heterostructure systems have been extensively studied using electron microscopy and energy dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy. The light emission characteristics of the bare and heterostructured systems have been analyzed using room temperature photoluminescence spectroscopy. The decoration of ZnS nanostructures over ZnO nanowalls has been evidenced through secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). The ‘matrix effect’ has been found to be prominent during SIMS analysis of the bare and heterostructured nanowalls indicating the presence of ZnS phase over ZnO surface. ‘MCs⁺‐SIMS’ has been employed to suppress the matrix effect and is found to be potentially effective in making a semi‐quantitative estimation of Zn and O surface–atom concentrations in both systems. The luminescence responses of the ZnS/ZnO heterostructures have been found to be strongly dependent on the extent of ZnS phase over ZnO. The higher luminescence responses in ZnS/ZnO heterostructures fabricated with smaller ZnS nanoparticles have been explained in terms of a mechanism of charge‐carrier transfer from ZnS to ZnO. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Surfactant-assisted route to synthesize well-aligned ZnO nanorod arrays on sol-gel-derived ZnO thin films

Anisotropic growth of ZnO nanorod arrays on ZnO thin films was achieved at a temperature of 90 degrees C by a surfactant-assisted soft chemical approach with control over size and orientation. ZnO thin films with c-axis preferred orientation had been achieved by the sol-gel technique. Lengths, diameters, and the degree of alignment of the ZnO nanorods were controlled by changing the experimental parameters. It was observed that the surfactant was essential to restrict the lateral growth of the nanorods, whereas the pH level of the reaction medium controlled the length of the nanorods. On the other hand, the orientation of the nanorods depended on the crystalline orientation of the film as well as the pH of the reaction medium. Room-temperature photoluminescence studies revealed that the ZnO nanorods with the best alignment exhibited the best emission property. The ZnO nanorods exhibited a strong UV emission peak at approximately 3.22 eV, ascribed to the band-edge emission. The field emission studies of the well-aligned nanorod arrays exhibited a low turn-on field of 1.7 V/microm to get an emission current density of 0.1 microA/cm(2).     

花状ZnO/ZnS异质结构的简易合成、结构表征及光催化活性

采用简便的两步溶液相化学方法,在较低温度下(80℃),制备出了花状的ZnO/ZnS异质结构。分别利用X射线衍射、X射线光电子能谱仪、扫描电子显微镜、透射电子显微镜、紫外-可见光谱仪等测试手段对所制备的样品进行表征,结果表明ZnO/ZnS异质结构是由花状ZnO纳米结构和ZnS纳米粒子组成。在光降解罗丹明B(RhB)的测试中,ZnO/ZnS异质结构样品体现出了比ZnO前驱物和商业P25光催化剂更高的光催化效率,这主要可归因于异质结构更有利于电子-空穴的有效分离。ZnO/ZnS光催化剂体现出良好的循环稳定性。     

ZnO/ZnS大面积单晶异质结及其光电性能研究

ZnO和ZnS是重要的Ⅱ-Ⅵ族宽禁带半导体材料,二者之间形成的异质结具有Ⅱ型能带结构,可以促使受激载流子实现空间分离,延长受激载流子的寿命,从而提高材料的光催化和光电探测性能。本文利用物理气相沉积方法,首次在ZnO块状单晶衬底上生长了一层ZnS单晶薄膜,薄膜由厚约4nm、边长几百纳米,取向一致的等边三角形纳米片组成。X射线衍射和透射电子显微镜的表征结果显示,ZnS薄膜与ZnO衬底具有单一外延取向关系。阴极射线荧光光谱表明ZnS薄膜的制备显著提高了ZnO单晶片可见光荧光发光峰的强度。此外,对ZnO/ZnS异质结的紫外光电探测性能的研究结果显示,异质结对不同波长的紫外光均有响应,光响应的上升弛豫时间和下降弛豫时间分别为200ms和1050ms,展示了较好的光电应用潜力。     

Influence of different substrates on ZnO nanorod arrays properties

Zinc Oxide (ZnO) nanorod arrays were grown on different substrates by hydrothermal method. The crystallinity of ZnO nanorod was regularly investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used to examine morphology of the ZnO nanorods. The results indicate that the nanorods grow along [002] orientation. SEM and TEM images and XRD patterns show that the growth of ZnO nanorods on graphene/Quartz substrate is better than the other substrates due to the number and size of the nanorods which are highly affected through the properties of ZnO seed layers and it has lower defects than the other substrates. PL spectra ZnO would have a higher concentration of oxygen vacancy.     

Patterned growth of ZnO nanorod arrays on a large-area stainless steel grid

Large-area ZnO nanorod arrays have been synthesized successfully on a stainless steel grid at a mild growth temperature of around 400 degrees C. The as-grown ZnO nanorods have uniform diameters of about 30-50 nm with approximately 5 nm tips. Patterned growth can be realized by engineering the shape of the grid in the growth. Photoluminescence demonstrates a sharp strong UV peak and a broad green band. The growth method provides a promising way of producing nanorod arrays with good controllability in patterns and morphologies, which will be critical in potential application such as high-efficiency filtering and catalysts.     

Synthesis of quantum-sized cubic ZnS nanorods by the oriented attachment mechanism

Quantum-sized ZnS nanocrystals with quasi-spherical and rod shapes were synthesized by the aging reaction mixtures containing diethylzinc, sulfur, and amine. Uniform-sized ZnS nanorods with the average dimension of 5 nm x 21 nm, along with a small fraction of 5 nm-sized quasi-spherical nanocrystals, were synthesized by adding diethylzinc to a solution containing sulfur and hexadecylamine at 125 degrees C, followed by aging at 300 degrees C. Subsequent secondary aging of the nanocrystals in oleylamine at 60 degrees C for 24 h produced nearly pure nanorods. Structural characterizations showed that these nanorods had a cubic zinc blende structure, whereas the fabrication of nanorods with this structure has been known to be difficult to achieve via colloidal chemical synthetic routes. High-resolution TEM images and reaction studies demonstrated that these nanorods are formed from the oriented attachment of quasi-spherical nanocrystals. Monodisperse 5 nm-sized quasi-spherical ZnS nanocrystals were separately synthesized by adding diethylzinc to sulfur dissolved in a mixture of hexadecylamine and 1-octadecene at 45 degrees C, followed by aging at 300 degrees C. When oleic acid was substituted for hexadecylamine and all other procedures were unchanged, we obtained 10 nm-sized quasi-spherical ZnS nanocrystals, but with broad particle size distribution. These two different-sized quasi-spherical ZnS nanocrystals showed different proportions of zinc blende and wurtzite crystal structures. The UV absorption spectra and photoluminescence excitation spectra of the 5 nm ZnS quasi-spherical nanocrystals and of the nanorods showed a blue-shift from the bulk band-gap, thus showing a quantum confinement effect. The photoluminescence spectra of the ZnS nanorods and quasi-spherical nanocrystals showed a well-defined excitonic emission feature and size- and shape-dependent quantum confinement effects.     

ZnO/ZnS core-shell composites for low-temperature-processed perovskite solar cells

Electron transport layers(ETLs)in perovskite solar cells(PSCs)are a key factor to determine the photovoltaic performance.Herein,we demonstrate preparation of Zn O/ZnS core-shell composites through directly synthesizing ZnS on the ZnO nanoparticles in solution.We confirmed the formation of ZnO/ZnS core-shell composites by the uses of X-ray diffraction patterns and the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.ZnO/ZnS composites exhibit much homogeneous surface morphology as compared with the bare Zn O as revealed in the scanning electronic microscopy.Moreover,the upper shift of conduction band level upon composition of the Zn O/Zn S film results in a better alignment of energy level,which facilitates cascade charge extraction and thus improves the current density of perovskite solar cell.The shift of conduction band also improves the voltage of the PSCs.The photoluminescence(PL)spectroscopies measured in both steady and transient states were carried out to characterize the charge extraction at the interface between CH_3NH_3PbI_3and the electron transport layers of either ZnO or ZnO/ZnS composite.The ZnO/ZnS composite can more efficiently quench the PL signal of perovskite absorber than bare Zn O resulting in enhanced photocurrent generation in PSCs.     

Large-scale synthesis of tube-like ZnS and cable-like ZnS-ZnO arrays: Preparation through the sulfuration conversion from ZnO arrays via a simple chemical solution route

Arrayed structures are desirable for many applications, but the fabrication of many material arrays remains a significant challenge. As a prominent II-VI semiconductor, large-scale arrayed ZnS structure has not been easily fabricated. Here, we introduce a simple structure conversion route for the synthesis of novel arrayed structures, and large-scale tube-like ZnS structure arrays and cable-like ZnS-ZnO composite arrays were successfully prepared through sulfuration conversion from arrayed rod-like ZnO structure based on a hydrothermal method at low temperature. XRD, EDS, SEM, TEM and PL are used to confirm the formation of the novel arrayed structure and trace the conversion process. The results show that the conversion ratio can be conveniently tailored by the reaction time, and the PL properties of the obtained materials can be adjusted through the conversion ratio. Especially, the cable-like structure holds the PL properties of both ZnO and ZnS structures. This simple solution method can be further extended to the preparation of other semiconductor sulfide and selenide, and can amplify the application field of large-scale arrays of semiconductors.     

Preparation of ZnS nanorods by a liquid crystal template

ZnS nanorods were synthesized in lamellar liquid crystals of C(12)E(4) by mixing zinc ions and thioacetamide (TAA) solution. The effects of the reactant concentration and the surfactant/water molar ratio in the liquid crystal system on the morphology and size of the ZnS particles were investigated. The prepared ZnS particles are regular nanorods having a width of about 60 nm and a length of about 80-380 nm, with a largest aspect ratio of about 6.3. A lamellar liquid crystal templating mechanism has been proposed to interpret the experimental results.     

Thickness-dependent photocatalytic performance of ZnO nanoplatelets

In this paper, we report the large-scale synthesis of ZnO nanoplatelets as thin as 10 nm. The nanoplatelets show higher efficiency in photodegrading organic dyes than ZnO nanorods do, and for the nanoplatelets, the thinner they are, the higher the performance. The photocatalytic decomposition of organic dyes (eosin B) by ZnO nanoplatelets compares favorably to the performances of ZnS porous nanoparticles and commercial Degussa P25 titania particles. This finding may have significant implications in the environment remediation and the fabrication of functional nanodevices.