Different ZnO nanostructures fabricated by a seed-layer assisted electrochemical route and their photoluminescence and field emission properties

Abstract

A simple seed-layer assisted electrochemical deposition (ECD) route has been successfully developed for preparation of different ZnO nanostructures, and their optical and field emission properties are also studied. ZnO films, nanowires, and nanosheets could be prepared in a rational way by just controlling the ECD current density. The corresponding growth mechanisms are also discussed on the basis of the characteristics of the ZnO crystal structure and the influences of the seed-layer and ECD current density. Except for ZnO nanosheets, both the room-temperature and low-temperature photoluminescence measurements of the ZnO films and nanowire arrays show strong ultraviolet excitonic emission, which proves their good crystal quality. Detailed analysis of the field emission (FE) properties indicates that the hierarchical ZnO nanowire array shows good FE property due to their high aspect ratio, small radius curvature, and proper density.