Narendar Gogurla

Multifunctional Au-ZnO Plasmonic Nanostructures for Enhanced UV Photodetector and Room Temperature NO Sensing Devices

In this study we report the enhancement of UV photodetection and wavelength tunable light induced NO gas sensing at room temperature using Au-ZnO nanocomposites synthesized by a simple photochemical process. Plasmonic Au-ZnO nanostructures with a size less than the incident wavelength have been found to exhibit a localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) that leads to a strong absorption, scattering and local field enhancement. The photoresponse of Au-ZnO nanocomposite can be effectively enhanced by 80 times at 335 nm over control ZnO. We also demonstrated Au-ZnO nanocomposites application to wavelength tunable gas sensor operating at room temperature. The sensing response of Au-ZnO nancomposite is enhanced both in UV and visible region, as compared to control ZnO. The sensitivity is observed to be higher in the visible region due to the LSPR effect of Au NPs. The selectivity is found to be higher for NO gas over CO and some other volatile organic compounds (VOCs), with a minimum detection limit of 0.1 ppb for Au-ZnO sensor at 335 nm.

Transparent and flexible resistive switching memory devices with a very high ON/OFF ratio using gold nanoparticles embedded in a silk protein matrix

The growing demand for biomaterials for electrical and optical devices is motivated by the need to make building blocks for the next generation of printable bio-electronic devices. In this study, transparent and flexible resistive memory devices with a very high ON/OFF ratio incorporating gold nanoparticles into the Bombyx mori silk protein fibroin biopolymer are demonstrated. The novel electronic memory effect is based on filamentary switching, which leads to the occurrence of bistable states with an ON=OFF ratio larger than six orders of magnitude. The mechanism of this process is attributed to the formation of conductive filaments through silk fibroin and gold nanoparticles in the nanocomposite. The proposed hybrid bio-inorganic devices show promise for use in future flexible and transparent nanoelectronic systems.

Photoelectrochemical and photosensing behaviors of hydrothermally grown ZnO nanorods

ZnO nanorods have been grown on indium-tin-oxide coated glass substrates by a low cost chemical process. Current-voltage characteristics have been studied using ZnO nanorods as photoanode in an electrochemical cell. The flat band voltage shift and depletion width of ZnO nanorods/electrolyte interface have been estimated from Mott-Schottky (MS) characteristics. The electrochemical impedance measurements have been carried out to study the charge transport mechanism at the semiconductor-electrolyte interface under dark and white light (100 mW/cm2) illumination. The doping concentration of nanorods has been extracted from MS plot. Photoresponse behavior of ZnO nanorods is found to be enhanced than seed layers with the incident of white light. Spectral dependent photovoltage of ZnO nanorods has been carried out using monochromatic light of wavelength 250–600 nm. The photopotential recovery time has been estimated for nanorods and seed layers. The stability of ZnO nanorods as a photoanode has been investigated.

Highly Luminescent WS2 Quantum Dots/ZnO Heterojunctions for Light Emitting Devices

Sonication induced vertical fragmentation of two-dimensional (2D) WS2 nanosheets into highly luminescent, monodispered, zero-dimensional (0D) quantum dots (QDs) is reported. The formation of 0D structures from 2D sheets and their surface/microstructure characterization are revealed from their microscopic and spectroscopic investigations. Size dependent optical properties of WS2 nanostructures have been explored by UV-vis absorption and photoluminescence spectroscopy. Interestingly, it is observed that, below a critical dimension (∼2 nm), comparable to the Bohr exciton radius, the tiny nanocrystals exhibit strong emission. Finally, the electroluminescence characteristics are demonstrated for the first time, by forming a heterojunction of stabilizer free WS2 QDs and ZnO thin films. The signature of white light emission in the light emitting device is attributed to the adequate intermixing of emission characteristics of WS2 QDs and ZnO. The observation of white electroluminescence may pave the way to fabricate prototype futuristic efficient light emitting devices.

Gold nanoparticle-embedded silk protein-ZnO nanorod hybrids for flexible bio-photonic devices

Silk protein has been used as a biopolymer substrate for flexible photonic devices. Here, we demonstrate ZnO nanorod array hybrid photodetectors on Au nanoparticle-embedded silk protein for flexible optoelectronics. Hybrid samples exhibit optical absorption at the band edge of ZnO as well as plasmonic energy due to Au nanoparticles, making them attractive for selective UV and visible wavelength detection. The device prepared on Au-silk protein shows a much lower dark current and a higher photo to dark-current ratio of ∼105 as compared to the control sample without Au nanoparticles. The hybrid device also exhibits a higher specific detectivity due to higher responsivity arising from the photo-generated hole trapping by Au nanoparticles. Sharp pulses in the transient photocurrent have been observed in devices prepared on glass and Au-silk protein substrates due to the light induced pyroelectric effect of ZnO, enabling the demonstration of self-powered photodetectors at zero bias. Flexible hybrid detectors have been demonstrated on Au-silk/polyethylene terephthalate substrates, exhibiting characteristics similar to those fabricated on rigid glass substrates. A study of the performance of photodetectors with different bending angles indicates very good mechanical stability of silk protein based flexible devices. This novel concept of ZnO nanorod array photodetectors on a natural silk protein platform provides an opportunity to realize integrated flexible and self-powered bio-photonic devices for medical applications in near future.

Plasmon mediated enhancement and tuning of optical emission properties of two dimensional graphitic carbon nitride nanosheets

We demonstrate surface plasmon induced enhancement and tunablilty in optical emission properties of two dimensional graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) nanosheets through the attachment of gold (Au) nanoparticles. Raman spectroscopy has revealed surface enhanced Raman scattering that arises due to the combined effect of the charge transfer process and localized surface plasmon induced enhancement in electromagnetic field, both occurring at the nanoparticle-nanosheet interface. Photoluminescence studies suggest that at an optimal concentration of nanoparticles, the emission intensity can be enhanced, which is maximum within the 500-525 nm region. Further, the fabricated electroluminescent devices reveal that the emission feature can be tuned from bluish-green to red (∼160 nm shift) upon attaching Au nanoparticles. We propose that the π*→π transition in g-C3N4 can trigger surface plasmon oscillation in Au, which subsequently increases the excitation process in the nanosheets and results in enhanced emission in the green region of the photoluminescence spectrum. On the other hand, electroluminescence of g-C3N4 can induce plasmon oscillation more efficiently and thus can lead to red emission from Au nanoparticles through the radiative damping of particle plasmons. The influence of nanoparticle size and coverage on the emission properties of two dimensional g-C3N4, nanosheets has also been studied in detail.

Plasmonic enhanced optical characteristics of Ag nanostructured ZnO thin films

We have demonstrated the enhanced photoluminescence and photoconducting characteristics of plasmonic Ag–ZnO films due to the light scattering effect from Ag nanoislands. Ag nanoislands have been prepared on ITO-coated glass substrates by thermal evaporation followed by annealing. Plasmonic Ag–ZnO films have been fabricated by depositing ZnO over Ag nanoislands by sol–gel process. The band-edge emission of ZnO is enhanced for 170 nm sized Ag nanoislands in ZnO as compared to pure ZnO. The defect emission is also found to be quenched simultaneously for plasmonic Ag–ZnO films. The enhancement and quenching of photoluminescence at different wavelengths for Ag–ZnO films can be well understood from the localized surface plasmon resonance of Ag nanoislands. The Ag–ZnO M–S–M photoconductor device showed a tenfold increment in photocurrent and faster photoresponse as compared to the control ZnO device. The enhancement in photoresponse of the device is due to the increased photon absorption in ZnO films via scattering of the incident illumination.

Plasmonic Ag-ZnO nanostructure thin films for optoelectronic devices

Plasmonic Ag nanoislands have been prepared on ITO-coated glass substrates by thermal evaporation followed by annealing. Enhanced optical properties of ZnO have been observed by depositing ZnO thin films on Ag nanoislands using spin-coating process.