Zhou Wei-Ya

Synthesis and strong blue-green emission properties of ZnO nanowires

ZnO nanowires were catalytically grown on Au-coated silicon substrates by the carbon thermal reduction method. The process involved addition of a low partial pressure of hydrogen sulphide to the argon carrier flow. The addition of H2S led to the higher yield and longer nanowires without any morphology change, and no sulphuric content was observed by the energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy in the resulting nanowires. The nanowires exhibited strong blue-green emission at room temperature and an increasing intensity when the partial pressure of H2S was raised. The temperature-dependent photoluminescence spectra show that intensity of the blue-green emission, almost without shift, decreases slowly with increasing temperature. Heat treatments indicated that quenching resulted in a higher ratio of blue-green emission to ultraviolet emission.

Self-organized formation of hexagonal nanopore arrays in anodic alumina

Conditions for a self-organized formation of ordered hexagonal structure in anodic alumina were investigated, using oxalic or sulphuric acid as an electrolyte. Highly-ordered nanopore arrays with pore densities of 9×109-6.5×1010cm-2 and high aspect ratios over 3000 were fabricated by a two-step anodization process. The array exhibits characteristics analogous to a two-dimensional polycrystalline structure of a few micrometres in size. The interpore distance can be controlled by changing the electrolyte and/or the applied voltage. The formation mechanism of ordered arrays is consistent with a previously proposed mechanical stress model, i.e., the repulsive forces between neighbouring pores at the metal/oxide interface promote the formation of hexagonally ordered pores during the oxidation process.

Synthesis and characterization of axially periodic Zn2SnO4 dendritic nanostructures

Zn2SnO4 (ZTO) nanowires with a unique dendritic nanostructure were synthesized via a simple one-step thermal evaporation and condensation process. The morphology and microstructure of the ZTO nanodendrite have been investigated by means of field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). SEM observation revealed the formation of branched nanostructures and showed that each branch exhibited a unique periodic structure formed by a row of overlaid rhombohedra of ZTO nanocrystals along the axis of the nanobranch. HRTEM studies displayed that the branches grew homoepitaxially as single-crystalline nanowires from the ZTO nanowire backbone. A possible growth model of the branched ZTO nanowires is discussed. To successfully prepare branched structures would provide an opportunity for both fundamental research and practical applications, such as three-dimensional nanoelectronics, and opto-electronic nanodevices.

Electron field emission from single-walled carbon nanotube nonwoven

Field emission from single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) nonwoven has been investigated under high vacuum with different vacuum gaps. A low turn-on electric field of 1.05 V/μm is required to reach an emission current density of 10 μA/cm2. An emission current density of 10 mA/cm2 is obtained at an operating electric field of 1.88 V/μm. No current saturation is found even at an emission current of 5 mA. With the vacuum gap increasing from 1 to 10 mm, the turn-on field decreases monotonically from 1.21 to 0.68 V/μm, while the field amplification is augmented. The good field-emission behaviour is ascribed to the combined effects of the intrinsic field emission of SWNT and the waved topography of the nonwoven.

Morphologies and microstructures of carbon nanotubes prepared by self-sustained arc discharging

We have investigated the morphology and microstructure of carbon nanotubes and nanoparticles in cathode deposits prepared by self-sustained arc discharge. Scanning electron microscopy images indicate that there are two regions exhibiting different morphologies on the top surface of the cathode deposits. In the central region, there is a triangular pattern of spots with a diameter up to 100mum, which consists of carbon nanotubes and nanoparticles. In the fringe region, carbon nanotubes and nanoparticles are distributed randomly. In addition, carbon nanotubes in the central region have a larger inner diameter, compared with those in the fringe region. The outer diameter distribution of tubes in the central region is narrower than that of tubes in the fringe region, while the former has a smaller peak value than the latter. For the nanoparticles, they exhibit a different behaviour from the tubes existing in the same region. The difference between the microstructure of tubes or particles in the two regions is attributed to the different temperatures and temperature gradients during their formation.

Seed-mediated growth of gold nanoparticles using self-assembled monolayer of polystyrene microspheres as nanotemplate arrays

Arrays of noble metal nanoparticles show potential applications in (bio-)sensing, optical storage, surface-enhanced spectroscopy, and waveguides. For all such potential devices, controlling the size, morphology, and interparticle spacing of the nanoparticles is very important. Here, we combine seed-mediated growth with nanosphere lithography to study the controllable growth of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs), in which the self-assembly monolayer of polystyrene (PS) on a silicon surface is used to guide the modification of alkanesilanes and the subsequent adsorption of gold seeds; seed-mediated growth is applied to controlling the morphology and size of Au NPs. The size of adsorption region (determining the number of adsorbed gold seeds) is controlled by etching PS microspheres with oxygen plasma or annealing PS microspheres at the glass transition temperature. The size and morphology of the Au NPs are controlled by changing growth conditions. In such a way, we have achieved the dual control of the obtained Au NPs. Preliminary results show that this strategy holds a great promise. This approach can also be extended to a wide range of materials and substrates.

Electronic properties of carbon nanotubes with a pentagon-heptagon pair defect

The features of energetics and electronic properties of carbon nanotubes, containing a pentagon-heptagon pair (5/7) topological defect in the hexagonal network of the zigzag configuration, are investigated using the extended Su-Schriffer-Heeger model based on the tight binding approximation in real space. Our calculations show that this pentagon-heptagon pair defect in the nanotube structures is not only responsible for a change in nanotube diameter, but also governs the electronic behaviour around Fermi level. Furthermore, we have calculated the densities of states of the (9,0)-(8,0) and (8,0)-(7,0) systems. For the (9,0)-(8,0) system, a narrow gap exists in the vicinity of the Fermi energy. In contrast, for the (8,0)-(7,0) system, a little peak of the density of states occurs at the Fermi energy. These can be attributed to the addition of a pair of pentagon-heptagon defects in the interface between two isolated carbon nanotubes.

AuPd catalytic nanoparticle size effect on the formation of amorphous silicon nanowires

Amorphous silicon (a-Si) nanowires have been prepared on SiO2/Si substrates by AuPd nanoparticles / silane reaction method. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy were used to characterize the samples. The typical a-Si nanowires we obtained are of a uniform diameter about 20 nm and length up to several micrometers. The growth mechanism of the nanowires seems to be the vapor-liquid-solid mechanism. The catalytic particle size effect on the formation of the nanowires and the cause of forming amorphous state Si nanowires are discussed.

Carbon nanotube film synthesized from ethanol and its oxidation behavior in air

In this paper, we propose an efficient way to synthesize carbon nanotube films using ferrocene and ethanol. The as-grown film is free-standing, semi-transparent, and of macro scale size. The tubes in the film are mostly single- or double-walled. The oxidation behavior of the film is studied via Raman spectroscopy, and the result indicates that the inner wall of the double-walled tube is effectively protected from oxidation by the outer wall.

Growth of aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes under ac electric fields through floating catalyst chemical vapour deposition

Through floating catalyst chemical vapour deposition(CVD) method, well-aligned isolated single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and their bundles were deposited on the metal electrodes patterned on the SiO2/Si surface under ac electric fields at relatively low temperature(280 degrees C). It was indicated that SWCNTs were effectively aligned under ac electric fields after they had just grown in the furnace. The time for a SWCNT to be aligned in the electric field and the effect of gas flow were estimated. Polarized Raman scattering was performed to characterize the aligned structure of SWCNTs. This method would be very useful for the controlled fabrication and preparation of SWCNTs in practical applications.