Peipei Liang

Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Activity of ZnO-Coated TiO2 Nanotubes and Its Dependence on ZnO Coating Thickness.

One-dimensional heterogeneous nanostructures in the form of ZnO-coated TiO2 nanotubes (ZnO/TiO2 NTs) were fabricated by atomic layer deposition of an ultrathin ZnO coating on electrochemical anodization-formed TiO2 nanotubes (NTs) with the thickness of ZnO coating being precisely controlled at atomic scale, and the photoelectrochemical activity of the fabricated ZnO/TiO2 NTs and the influence of ZnO coating and its thickness were studied. The structures of TiO2 NTs and ZnO coatings were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Raman backscattering spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The photoelectrochemical activity was studied through the measurements of electrochemical impendence, flat-band potential, and transient photocurrent density. The TiO2 NTs exhibit anatase structure, and the ZnO coatings are structured with hexagonal wurtzite. The photoelectrochemical activity of the ZnO/TiO2 NTs is strongly dependent on the thickness of ZnO coating. ZnO/TiO2 NTs with a thinner rather than a thicker ZnO coating exhibit better photoelectrochemical activity with reduced charge transfer resistance, increased negative flat-band potentials, and enhanced photocurrent densities. Under visible illumination, an increase of about 60 % in the photoelectrochemical activity is obtained for ZnO/TiO2 NTs with an about 2-nm-thick ZnO coating.

Extended photo-response of ZnO/CdS core/shell nanorods fabricated by hydrothermal reaction and pulsed laser deposition

Heterogenous nanostructures shaped with CdS covered ZnO (ZnO/CdS) core/shell nanorods (NRs) are fabricated on indium-tin-oxide by pulsed laser deposition of CdS on hydrothermally grown ZnO NRs and characterized through morphology examination, structure characterization, photoluminescence and optical absorption measurements. Both the ZnO cores and the CdS shells are hexagonal wurtzite in structure. Compared with bare ZnO NRs, the fabricated ZnO/CdS core/shell NRs present an extended photo-response and have optical properties corresponding to the two excitonic band-gaps of ZnO and CdS as well as the effective band-gap formed between the conduction band minimum of ZnO and the valence band maximum of CdS.

Confinement effects of shock waves on laser-induced plasma from a graphite target

The spatial confinement effects of shock waves on the laser-induced plasma (LIP) from a graphite target in air were studied by probe beam deflection (PBD) measurements and optical emission spectroscopy (OES). A clear relationship between the confinement of the LIP by the shock wave and the effects on the LIP emission was observed, and the underlying mechanisms are discussed. PBD monitoring revealed that the laser-ablation induced shock wave could be well analogized to the shock wave generated by a point explosion and would be reflected by a block. OES measurements indicated that the optical emission of the LIP exhibited significant variations with the block placement. A first enhancement and then a fast decay of CN molecular emission as well as a suppression of carbon atomic emission were observed in the presence of the block. The results revealed that the reflected shock wave spatially confined the expansion of the LIP and compressed the LIP after encountering it, pushing back the species of the LIP and changing the density of the LIP species including luminous carbon atoms and CN molecules. It is suggested that the change of the LIP emission is attributed to the density variation of the LIP species due to the compression of the LIP and the reactions occurring in the plasma.

Formation of diatomic molecular radicals in reactive nitrogen-carbon plasma generated by electron cyclotron resonance discharge and pulsed laser ablation

The reactive nitrogen-carbon plasma generated by electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) microwave discharge of N2 gas and pulsed laser ablation of a graphite target was characterized spectroscopically by time-integrated and time-resolved optical emission spectroscopy with space resolution for a study of gas-phase reactions and molecular radical formation in the plasma. The plasma exhibits very high reactivity compared with the plasma generated solely by ECR discharge or by pulsed laser ablation and contains highly excited species originally present in the ambient gaseous environment and directly ablated from the target as well as formed as the products of gas-phase reactions occurring in the plasma. The space distribution and the time evolution of the plasma emission give an access to the gas-phase reactions for the formation of C2 and CN radicals, revealing that C2 radicals are formed mainly in the region near the target while CN radicals can be formed in a much larger region not only in the vicinity of the ...

Composition and bandgap control of AlxGa1−xN films synthesized by plasma-assisted pulsed laser deposition

Ternary AlxGa1−xN films with different Al compositions were synthesized on sapphire and Si substrates by pulsed laser co-ablation of a polycrystalline GaAs target and a metallic Al target in nitrogen plasma generated by electron cyclotron resonance discharge of N2 gas. Spectroscopy was used to characterize the synthesis process for the mechanisms responsible for AlxGa1−xN synthesis and film deposition. The synthesized AlxGa1−xN films were evaluated using field emission scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman scattering spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and optical transmission measurements. The AlxGa1−xN films have hexagonal wurtzite structure, which degenerates as the Al composition increases, and show high optical transparency with the absorption edge blue shifted and the bandgap widened with the increasing Al composition. A comparison of the synthesized AlxGa1−xN films with the binary GaN and AlN films synthesized by a similar method reveals their similarity in the structure and the optical properties.

Spectroscopic characterization of the plasma generated during the deposition of AlxGa1−xN films by pulsed laser co-ablation of Al and GaAs targets in electron cyclotron resonance nitrogen plasma

A nitrogen–aluminum–gallium–arsenic plasma is formed by pulsed laser co-ablation of an Al target and a GaAs target in electron cyclotron resonance discharge-generated nitrogen plasma for AlxGa1−xN film deposition. The formed plasma was characterized by time-integrated and time-resolved optical emission spectroscopy measurements and the process of AlxGa1−xN deposition was discussed. The plasma contains excited species originally present in the working N2 gas and energetic species ablated from the targets, and its emission is abundant in the emission bands of diatomic nitrogen molecules and molecular ions and the emission lines of monoatomic aluminum, gallium, and arsenic atoms and atomic ions. The temporal and spatial features of the plasma emission reveal that the nitrogen species in the electron cyclotron resonance nitrogen plasma experience additional excitations due to the expanding ablation plumes, and the ablated species are excited frequently when traveling with the expanding plumes in the nitrogen plasma, making the formed plasma very reactive, which is very important in the process of AlxGa1−xN film deposition. The deposited film was evaluated for composition analysis by energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy and structure characterization by x-ray diffraction. The AlxGa1−xN film is slightly nitrogen rich with an aluminum content x of about 0.6 and featured with hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure with preferred c-axis orientation.

Study on re-sputtering during CNx film deposition through spectroscopic diagnostics of plasma

A nitrogen-carbon plasma was generated during the deposition of carbon nitride (CNx) thin films by pulsed laser ablation of a graphite target in a discharge nitrogen plasma, and the optical emission of the generated nitrogen-carbon plasma was measured for the diagnostics of the plasma and the characterization of the process of CNx film deposition. The nitrogen-carbon plasma was recognized to contain various species including nitrogen molecules and molecular ions excited in the ambient N2 gas, carbon atoms and atomic ions ablated from the graphite target and CN radicals. The temporal evolution and spatial distribution of the CN emission and their dependence on the substrate bias voltage show two groups of CN radicals flying in opposite directions. One represents the CN radicals formed as the products of the reactions occurring in the nitrogen-carbon plasma, revealing the reactive deposition of CNx film due to the reactive expansion of the ablation carbon plasma in the discharge nitrogen plasma and the effe...

Intense violet and blue light emission from Si nanowires fabricated via solid–liquid–solid growth from amorphous Si films

Violet and blue luminescent Si nanowires were fabricated by annealing an amorphous Si film on a Ni-coated Si substrate via solid–liquid–solid growth. The fabricated Si nanowires have an average diameter of 50 nm. The wire stem is composed of a crystalline Si core of several nanometers and an amorphous oxide sheath. The Si nanowires are capable of emitting strong violet and blue luminescence in the spectral region ranging from 380 to 500 nm, which has a very short decay time of tens of nanoseconds, and is remarkably different in spectral region and luminescence time from the luminescence emitted by Si nanocrystals.