Growth mechanism and properties of ZnO nanorods synthesized by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition

Uniformly distributed ZnO nanorods have been grown by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition using a two-step process. By controlling the oxygen content in the gas mixture during the nucleation and growth steps, no catalyst is required for the formation of ZnO nanorods. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy studies show that ZnO nanorods are single crystals and that they grow along the c axis of the crystal plane. Alignment of these nanorods with respect to the substrates depends on the lattice mismatch between ZnO and the substrate, the surface electric field, and the amount of defects in the starting nuclei. Room-temperature photoluminescence measurements of these ZnO nanorods have shown…

• NS
  National Science Foundation
• MR
  Materials Research Science and Engineering Center, Harvard University
• DO
  Division of Materials Research