The influence of hydrogen on the growth of gallium catalyzed silicon oxide nanowires

In this paper, we report that amorphous silicon oxide nanowires can be grown in a large quantity by chemical vapor deposition with molten gallium as the catalyst in a flow of mixture of SiH₄, H₂ and N₂ at 600 °C. Meanwhile, when we grow these nanowires under the same conditions but without H₂, octopus-like silicon oxide nanostructures are obtained. The reasons and mechanisms for the growth of these nanowires and nanostructures are discussed. Blue light emission is observed from SiO_x nanowires, which can be attributed to defect centers of high oxygen deficiency. These SiO_x nanowires may find applications in nanodevices and reinforcing composites.     

Synthesis of In-doped Ga2O3 zigzag-shaped nanowires and optical properties

In-doped Ga₂O₃ zigzag-shaped nanowires and undoped Ga₂O₃ nanowires have been synthesized on Si substrate by thermal evaporation of mixed powders of Ga, In₂O₃ and graphite at 1000 °C without using any catalyst via a vapor-solid growth mechanism. The morphologies and microstructures of the products were characterized by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL). The nanowires range from 100 nm to several hundreds of nanometers in diameter and several tens of micrometers in length. A broad emission band from 400 to 700 nm is obtained in the PL spectrum of these nanowires at room temperature. There are two blue-emission peaks centering at 450 and 500 nm, which originate from the oxygen vacancies, gallium vacancies and gallium-oxygen vacancy pairs.     

Structural, optical and electrical properties of cadmium zinc oxide films for light emitting devices

Structural, optical and electrical properties of Cd_yZn_1-yO (y=0–0.1) ternary alloy thin films have been investigated for the films prepared using the spin coating method on the glass substrate. XRD pattern confirmed the nano-size polycrystalline hexagonal wurtzite structure for all the samples. The size of nano-crystals was found to be varied in between 21 and 30 nm. Optical band gap calculated from the absorption coefficient signifies the shift in direct band gap from 3.2 to 2.97 eV with cadmium composition. Through EDAX spectrum, it was confirmed that Cadmium was successfully incorporated into ZnO. SEM studies make clear that even after Cadmium incorporation, the surface morphology of the films remained smooth. The current–voltage characteristics obtained from semiconductor characterization system reveals that resistance of the films was found to be decreased with the increase in cadmium composition. Our investigations lead to the applicability of CdZnO as an active layer in CdZnO/ZnO heterostructure for light emitting devices.     

Effect of annealing temperature on the optical constants of zinc oxide films

In this paper, the effect of annealing temperature on optical constants was studied. The ZnO films were deposited on microscopic glass substrates using the sol-gel method for various annealing temperatures. The deposited zinc oxide (ZnO) films were characterized by an X-ray diffractometer (XRD), a spectrophotometer and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The transmittance spectra recorded through the spectrophotometer exhibits 90% transmittance. The XRD spectra showed polycrystalline nature of ZnO film. Optical constants were determined through transmittance spectra using an envelope method. It was found that there was a significant effect of annealing temperature on the refractive index and extinction coefficient of deposited ZnO films. In this experiment, the optimum refractive index value of 1.97 was obtained at 350 °C annealing temperature at visible (vis) wavelength. The optical energy gap was found to be of ∼3.2 eV for all the samples. The top view of SEM showed the ZnO grain growth on the glass substrates.     

掺AlZnO纳米线阵列的光致发光特性研究

采用化学气相沉积方法，以金做催化剂，在Si (100)衬底上制备了掺AlZnO纳米线阵列.扫描电子显微镜(SEM)表征发现ZnO纳米线的直径在30nm左右.X射线衍射(XRD)图谱上只存在ZnO的(002)衍射峰，说明ZnO纳米线沿c轴择优取向.掺AlZnO纳米线阵列的室温光致发光(PL)谱中出现了3个带边激子发射峰：373nm，375nm，389nm.运用激子理论推算出掺AlZnO纳米线的禁带宽度为3.343eV ，束缚激子结合能为0.156eV；纯ZnO纳米线阵列PL谱中3个带边激子发射 关键词： 光致发光 化学气相沉积(CVD) 激子 ZnO纳米线阵列     

Structure and optical properties of chemically synthesized titanium oxide deposited by evaporation technique

Titanium oxide inorganic ion exchange material was synthesized by hydrolysis with water and ammonia solution. Structural feature of the synthesized titanium oxide was analyzed using X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence and infrared spectrometer technique. Tentative formula of titanium oxide was determined and written as TiO₂·0.58H₂O. Titanium oxide films were deposited on glass substrates by means of an electron beam evaporation technique at room temperature from bulk sample. The films were annealed at 250, 350, 450, and 550 °C temperatures. Transmittance, reflectance, optical energy gap, refractive index and extinction coefficient were investigated. The transmittance values of 85% in the visible region and 88% in the near infrared region have been obtained for titanium oxide film annealed at 550 °C. Kubelka-Munk function was used to evaluate the absorption coefficient which was used to determine the optical band gap. It was found that the optical band gap increases with increasing annealing temperature whereas the refractive index and extinction coefficient decreases.     

Chemical vapor deposition synthesis of Ge doped ZnO nanowires and the optical property investigation

Ge-doped ZnO nanowires with high quality were prepared with simple chemical vapor deposition method. The morphology, crystal structure and elemental distribution were characterized using SEM (scanning electron microscopy), HRTEM (high resolution transmission electron microscopy) and EDS (energy dispersive spectrometry) mapping approaches. The optical properties were investigated with combination of room-temperature CL (cathode ray luminescence) and variable temperature micro-PL methods. It is found for the first time that a tapered Ge doped nanowire exhibits a thickness-dependent spectrum shift under a cathode-ray excitation, which was interpreted by the electron-lattice interaction model and the band-filling effect of semiconductors. The exciting power dependent emission spectra (lux-luminescent characteristics) at varied temperatures reveal a varied radiative recombination mechanism. At 83 K, free excitons contribute to the emission spectrum, while at 300 K while at 300 K multi-levels related non-radiative transition process largely contributed. The optical property indicates an excellent crystallization of the nanowires with a small amount of defects.     

Effect of aluminium doping and annealing on structural and optical properties of cerium oxide nanocrystals

Nanocrystalline fluorite-like structures of Ce_1−xAl_xO_2−δ compounds were prepared by the chemical precipitation method using cerium chloride and aluminium chloride as precursors. The prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The effects of aluminium doping concentration and annealing on particle size, lattice parameter and band gap energies were investigated. The particle size of Al-doped CeO₂ samples were found to decrease with Al concentration and it increases from 6 to 20 nm as annealing temperature increases to 900 °C.     

Effect of iron doping and annealing on structural and optical properties of cerium oxide nanocrystals

Nanocrystalline fluorite-like structures of Ce_1−xFe_xO_2−δ compounds were prepared by chemical precipitation method using cerium chloride and iron chloride as precursors. The prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The effects of iron doping concentration and annealing on particle size, lattice parameter and band gap energies were investigated. The particle size of Fe-doped CeO₂ samples were found to decrease with iron concentration and it increases from 9 to 26 nm as annealing temperature increases to 900 °C.     

Characterization, sintering and dielectric properties of nanocrystalline zinc oxide prepared by a citric acid-based combustion route

Nanosized zinc oxide has been synthesized through a novel single step solution combustion route using citric acid as fuel. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis revealed that the synthesized ZnO nanopowder has the pure wurtzite structure. The phase purity of the nanopowder has been confirmed using differential thermal analysis (DTA), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The morphology and crystalline size of the as-prepared nanopowder characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed that the powder consisted of a mixture of nanoparticles and nanorods. The nanocrystalline ZnO could be sintered to ∼97% of the theoretical density at 1200 °C in 4 h. The dielectric constant (ε_r) and dielectric loss (ε_i) of sintered ZnO pellets at 5 MHz were 1.38 and 9×10⁻², respectively, at room temperature.     

Optical and magneto-optical spectra of europium-doped strontium tetraborate single crystals

Optical absorption, luminescence, magnetic circular dichroism and Faraday rotation spectra of Sr_0.95Eu_0.05B₄O₇ single crystals are studied. The crystal field parameter for europium ions is found to be equal to 790 cm⁻¹. Excitation spectrum of luminescence strongly differs from that of low-doped polycrystalline strontium tetraborate. The Verdet constant in the ultraviolet is comparable to that of terbium gallium garnet in the visible.     

Structural and optical properties of nanophase zinc oxide

Nanophase zinc oxide samples were synthesized by a two-step solid-state reaction method. The phase structure and microstructure were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The vibrational Raman spectra were compared with those from the bulk and their grain size dependence was also examined. Their photoelectric behavior was studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The peaks at 1044.5 and 1021.4 eV were recorded as corresponding to the respective binding energies of Zn 2p_1/2 and Zn 2p_3/2, and the photoelectron spectrum of O 1s in the as-prepared powder was located at 531.2 eV. A strong visible emission centered at 580 nm was clearly observed in the nanosized zinc oxide at room temperature. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra were investigated as a function of grain size after different heat treatments. The origin of the luminescence is attributed to the recombination of electrons in singly occupied oxygen vacancies with photoexcited holes in the valence band. Received: 30 June 2001 / Accepted: 20 February 2002 / Published online: 3 June 2002 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +86-25/359-5535, E-mail: mszhang@nju.edu.cn     

Electronic properties of grains and grain boundaries in graphene grown by chemical vapor deposition

We synthesize hexagonal shaped single-crystal graphene, with edges parallel to the zig-zag orientations, by ambient pressure CVD on polycrystalline Cu foils. We measure the electronic properties of such grains as well as of individual graphene grain boundaries, formed when two grains merged during the growth. The grain boundaries are visualized using Raman mapping of the D band intensity, and we show that individual boundaries between coalesced grains impede electrical transport in graphene and induce prominent weak localization, indicative of intervalley scattering in graphene.     

Ex situ synthesis and optical properties of ZnO-PbS nanocomposites

Zinc oxide (ZnO) and lead sulphide (PbS) nanoparticles separately synthesized by a precipitation method were combined by an ex situ route to prepare ZnO-PbS nanocomposites with different molar ratios of ZnO and PbS. The structure and morphology of the ZnO, PbS and ZnO-PbS samples were analyzed with X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). A UV-vis spectrophotometer was used to collect the absorption and 325 nm He-Cd and 488 nm Ar lasers were used to collect the photoluminescence data from the samples. ZnO nanoparticles showed a broad and stable emission peak at ∼570 nm, while a strongly quantum confined emission from PbS nanoparticles was detected at ∼1344-1486 nm. The ZnO-PbS nanocomposites exhibited dual emission in the visible and near-infrared (NIR) regions that is associated with defects and recombination of excitonic centres in the ZnO and PbS nanoparticles, respectively. The PL intensity of the visible emission from the ZnO-PbS nanocomposite was shown to increase when the ZnO to PbS molar ratio was 5:1 and the emission was almost quenched at molar ratios of 1:1 and 1:5. For different molar ratios of ZnO to PbS, the PL intensity of the NIR emission from the ZnO-PbS nanocomposites was more intense than that of PbS nanoparticles.     

An organic programmable diode with pentacene, zinc oxide nanoparticles and polymethylsilsesquioxane

In this paper, we proposed an organic programmable diode as a memory device. This device consists of layers of pentacene and zinc oxide nanoparticles embedded in polymethylsilsesquioxane. The device exhibits a change in current flow of an order up to 10⁵ and is comparable or better to many reported organic diode memory devices. A two-barrier model has been used to explain the memory effect of the organic diode. The device can be written and erased multiple times similar to a flash memory.     

Complex impedance spectroscopy of Mn-doped zinc oxide nanorod films

The frequency-dependent properties of Mn-doped (3-5 at.%) aligned zinc oxide (Mn-ZnO) nanorods, synthesized by hybrid wet chemical route onto glass substrates, were investigated by bias-dependent impedance spectroscopy. No peak of Mn cluster/secondary phases was detected in the X-ray diffraction traces of the samples. XPS studies show the presence of oxygen vacancies in Mn-ZnO nanorods and Mn in Mn²⁺ and Mn⁴⁺ charge states. Although X-ray diffraction/X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy does not give any indication of the presence of metal clusters in the samples, bias-dependent impedance spectroscopy demonstrates significant sensitivity to the formation of Mn clusters in Mn-ZnO nanorods.     

Synthesis of iron-filled carbon nanotubes with a great excess of ferrocene and their magnetic properties

Iron-filled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were synthesized using a floating catalyst chemical vapor deposition method with a great excess of ferrocene (more than 30 mg/min of vaporization rate) at 800 C. The amount of ferrocene is more than that in previous reports. The ferrocene was employed as both catalyst precursor and an iron source. Our observations indicate that the CNTs were more than 10 micrometer in length, with an outer diameter of 20–100 nm and inner diameter of 10–30 nm. The inner cavity of the CNTs was partial filled with iron nanowires. Magnetic property measurements reveal that the iron-filled CNTs exhibit an average coercivity of about 257.05 G.     

Structural and optical properties of porous iron oxide

The structural and optical properties of the novel porous iron oxide fabricated by wood template have been investigated. The obtained porous iron oxide was characterized to be α- Fe₂O₃ by Fourier transform infrared and Raman spectroscopy. X-ray absorption fine structure measurement revealed that the bond length of Fe-O₁ of the porous iron oxide has good agreement with that reported for the α- Fe₂O₃ crystal structure while the bond lengths for Fe-O₂ and Fe-Fe deviate slightly from those of the α- Fe₂O₃ crystal structure. Photoluminescence from the porous iron oxide exhibited broad emission bands around 760 and 890 nm, which are believed to be due to the unique nanoscale structure of the porous iron oxide.     

Rational doping for zinc oxide and its influences on morphology and optical properties

Zinc oxide(ZnO) nanopowders doped with different metal ions(Me, Me = Sn4+, In3+, Mn2+, and Co2+) are prepared by a simple sol–gel method. Influences of the ion doping on morphology and optical properties of the resulting ZnxMeyO are investigated by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, UV-vis absorption spectrum, and photoluminescence. The morphology of ZnO can be tailored by ion doping, which is closely related not only to the ionic radii and electronegativities of the doped ions, but also to their oxidation states and electron configurations. The optical band gap and photoluminescence of ZnO can also be modulated by ion doping, which results from a combination of different effects, Burstein–Moss, band tail, charge compensation, sp–d exchange, non-radiative recombination, and blocking barrier. This may offer us a viable approach to tuning the(optical) properties of ZnO-based materials via rational ion doping.     

Tailoring optical properties of TiO2 nanowires coated with Ag nanoparticles by plasmon coupling of Ag nanoparticles

TiO₂ nanowires were grown on titanium foil by an alkali hydrothermal growth method. The as-synthesized nanowires are structurally uniform with diameters of 50-100 nm and lengths of up to a few micrometers. The as-prepared TiO₂ nanowires were coated with Ag nanoparticles by reducing AgNO₃ in solution. The experimental results indicate that the Ag nanoparticles can aggregate together on the surfaces of TiO₂ nanowires by interconnection between nanoparticles. The degree of aggregation of Ag nanostructures can be controlled by changing the concentrations of Ag nanoparticles. The as-prepared nanostructures exhibit a wide optical absorption from 387 to 580 nm that can be easily tuned by controlling the degree of aggregation of Ag nanostructures. The results reveal that optical properties of the Ag-coated TiO₂ nanowires can be enhanced by plasmon coupling of Ag nanoparticles. The as-prepared nanostructures may find potential applications in the field of solar cells.